Check out our breakdown of the post-fight bonuses from UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Smith from Hamburg, Germany.
The Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany, was home to a terrible day of fights, we saw two (T)KOs, one submission, and 10 decisions, including two split-decisions.
The show was almost on track to setting a new record, although not one worth bragging about, as it would’ve been the event with the most decisions. As it stands currently, it is tied for most decision-laden card. There were a couple decent bouts in there, but the majority were worthy substitutes for Ambien.
Performances of the Night:
Anthony Smith came out and did exactly what he was brought here to do. He took Ol’ Shogun out back and put one (or ten) to his head. Mauricio Rua has had a legendary MMA career, but time waits for no man, not even a Shogun.
Smith threw a front kick, forcing Shogun to come forward. Smith was waiting, and quickly rocked Shogun. Rua covered his head, stumbling towards the cage, unable to muster any sort of counter or even takedown attempt. It was a matter of time, and the referee recognized it. He stepped in to stop the bout, but Rocky threw the towel too damn late, and Smith knocked Rua clean out a split second before the ref managed to end the bout.
Smith received an extra $50,000 for putting an end to all our suffering.
Manny Bermudez wasted no time in putting it on Davey Grant, taking just 59 seconds to get the submission victory. One of the very first moments of the fight saw Bermudez drop Grant with a straight right, and he dove onto a triangle on top without hesitation. Grant squirmed, bucked and twisted, but Bermudez held on, increasing the squeeze bit by bit until the sleepy hand of the sandman tapped Grant on the shoulder and took him on a trip.
Bermudez got a $50K bonus for his mounted triangle technical submission victory.
Fight of the Night: Danny Roberts vs. David Zawada
Danny Roberts and David Zawada put on one helluva fight from the opening bell to the closer. Both men came out swinging for the fences, with Zawada pressuring and giving no quarter and Roberts having a pretty clear striking advantage. Zawada’s outstanding grappling in the second round presented a real challenge for Roberts, but the Englishman managed to stay focused and escaped numerous submission attempts.
By the time the third round was underway, Roberts seemed to hit his grove, but Zawada threatened to end his night several times. Fortunately for Roberts, his calmness under pressure aided him in the scrambles and ultimately won him a hard-fought decision.
Both men scored 50,000 extra smackers for their bank accounts in what was one of the few truly enjoyable fights on this card.