The Octagon returned to Arizona for tonight’s UFC 263 event, a fourteen-bout fight card headlined by a rematch between Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori.
The middleweight title fight proved to be a dominant showing from Adesanya. The champ was able to seemingly stifle the grappling of Marvin Vettori, which left the Italian standing in Izzy’s wheelhouse. Although ‘Stylebender’ did not deliver on the finish that he promised, he won every round on all three of the judges scorecards.
In the co-main event of UFC 263, Deiveson Figueiredo once again put his title on the line against top contender Brandon Moreno. The highly anticipated flyweight title fight rematch proved to be one-sided contest. Moreno was able to set an incredible pace early that seemed to frustrate and bewilder Figueiredo. After easily winning the first two rounds, Brandon Moreno would take the fight to the floor in round three where he promptly locked up a rear-naked choke to finish the fight.
The rest of tonight’s fight card also delivered with some memorable scraps and jaw-dropping finishes.
Following the conclusion of the UFC 263 event, promotional officials announced at the post-fight press conference that four fighters would be taking home performance bonuses.
Fight of the night: Drew Dober and Brad Riddell each picked up an extra $50k for their thrilling fight that served as tonight’s featured preliminary bout. After three rounds of back and forth action, Riddell was awarded a unanimous decision victory from the judges in attendance (29-28 x3)
Performance of the night: Paul Craig earned an extra $50k for his nasty TKO victory over Jamahal Hill which kicked off tonight’s UFC 263 main card. The Scottish standout locked up an armbar which dislocated Hill’s limb and proceeded to finish him with elbows.
Performance of the night: Brandon Moreno picked up an extra $50k for his title-earning finish of Deiveson Figueiredo in tonight’s UFC 263 co-main event. After domination the opening two rounds of the contest, the Mexican standout locked up a submission in round three which forced the Brazilian to tapout.
Are you surprised by any of the performance bonuses handed out following the conclusion of today’s UFC 263 event in Arizona? Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!