UFC San Diego started with some fireworks, featuring two early knockouts, but nothing early prepared fight fans for the battles on the main card. Four of the six featured fights ended with a finish, and even the two that went to a decision were Fight of the Night candidates (more on that below). When it came down to the UFC San Diego payouts and bonuses, the organization surely showed some restraint, sticking with the traditional pair of Performance of the Night bonuses and a singular fight of the night. Keep reading to see who earned what and took home big paydays from Saturday’s fight night.
Performance of the Night – Marlon Vera and Tyson Nam
In just the third fight of the night, Ode’ Osbourne was looking to make a statement when he attempted a flying knee toward Tyson Nam. Instead, it was Nam who delivered an absolute shot on an airborne Osbourne, knocking him out and sending him crashing to the mat just three minutes into the bout. The strike would stand as one of the best contacts of the night, landing Nam this bonus.
Joining Nam with a Performance of the Night designation is Marlon “Chito” Vera who put the exclamation point on the evening. Down on the officials’ scorecards to Dominick Cruz entering the fourth round, Vera took the matters into his own hands, landing a nasty kick to the face of Cruz that clearly broke his nose. That was after Vera had already started to turn the tide of the match. Earning the Performance of the Night, both he and Nam collected an extra $50,000 each toward their UFC San Diego payouts.
Fight of the Night – Nate Landwehr vs David Onama
Following the battle between Yazmin Jauregui and Iasmin Lucindo, the bar for Fight of the Night was established. That David Onama and Nate Landwehr were able to surpass it for the honor reflects just how entertaining the co-main event was. Early on, the fight didn’t appear to be much of a contest at all, with Onama dominating in the first round. In Round 2, however, Onama appeared to have nothing left in the tank as Landwehr took control of the fight, recording a unanimous 10-8 frame across the officials’ scorecards.
𝑷𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 🍿
[ @NateTheTrain | #UFCSanDiego ] pic.twitter.com/NfoZgpTjxS
— UFC (@ufc) August 14, 2022
By some miracle, Onama found the heart and the energy to go back out for a third round, much to the approval of the crowd. Landwehr was in absolute control and putting on a show for the fans in attendance and watching from home. Each time he would send Onama to the mat, Landwehr would appeal to the crowd, letting his opponent decide whether the fight continued or not. Ever the warrior, Onama continued to rise from the mat and nearly mustered the strength to capture the fight in the waning minutes.
The fight could have been ended early by Landwehr were it not for his showmanship that was borderline unsportsmanlike. Still, the war raged on, sending the crowd in Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California to a deafening roar. As things played out, both fighters left the night winners of the Fight of the Night honor, and they each earned an additional $50,000 by way of the bonus.
UFC San Diego Payouts – Main Card and Preliminaries
In most fight locations for the UFC, the organization doesn’t have to report fighter salaries for an event. With California being one of the key sites that do require it, however, fight fans get a glimpse into how much UFC fighters earn. The winners on the night each earned a victory bonus that double their salary for the evening, notably putting Vera at $300,000 for winning his fight against Cruz. Angela Hill left San Diego as the second highest-paid fighter of the night, collecting $190,000 after factoring in her win bonus.
Here are the breakdowns of how much each athlete collected in the UFC San Diego payouts according to Yahoo! Finance and the California State Athletic Commission.
- Youssef Zalal – $24,000 for draw
- Da’Mon Blackshear – $12,000 for draw
- Josh Quinlan – $10,000 +$10,000 win bonus
- Jason Witt – $23,000
- Tyson Nam – $25,000 + $25,000 win bonus
- Ode’ Osbourne – $28,000
- Gabriel Benitez – $50,000 + $50,000 win bonus
- Charlie Ontiveros – $12,000
- Nina Nunes – $40,000 + $40,000 win bonus
- Cynthia Calvillo – $70,000
- Martin Buday – $12,000 + $12,000 win bonus
- Lukasz Brzeski – $10,000
- Angela Hill – $95,000 + $95,000 win bonus
- Loopy Gordinez – $45,000
- Gerald Meerschaert – $70,000 + $70,000 win bonus
- Bruno Silva – $40,000
- Priscila Cachoeira – $40,000 + $40,000 win bonus
- Ariane Lipski – $40,000
- Azamat Murzakanov – $12,000 + $12,000 win bonus
- Devin Clark – $75,000
- Yazmin Jauregui – $25,000 + $25,000 win bonus
- Iasmin Lucindo – $12,000
- Nate Landwehr – $30,000 + $30,000 win bonus
- David Onama – $24,000
- Marlon Vera – $150,000 + $150,000 win bonus
- Dominick Cruz – $175,000
UFC San Diego Payouts for Venum Sponsorship (based on number of fights in the UFC)
Per the UFC Promotional Guidelines
- $4,000 (1-3 fights): Da’Mon Blackshear (debut), Josh Quinlan (debut), Charlie Ontiveros (3), Martin Buday (2), Lukasz Brzeski (debut), Murzakanov (2), Yazmin Jaregui (debut), Iasmin Lucindo (debut)
- $4,500 (4-5 fights): Bruno Silva (5), Nate Landwehr (5), David Onama (4)
- $6,000 (6-10 fights): Youseff Zalal (7), Jason Witt (6), Ode’ Osbourne (6), Tyson Nam (6), Nina Nunes (9), Loopy Godinez (6), Priscila Cachoeira (8), Ariane Lipski (8), Dominick Cruz (10)
- $11,000 (11-15 fights): Gabriel Benitez (13), Cynthia Calvillo (12), Devin Clark (14)
- $16,000 (16-20 fights): Gerald Meerschaert (17), Marlon Vera (19)
- $21,000 (21+ fights): Angela Hill (21)
UFC Fight Night: Vera vs Cruz Results
Main Card
- Marlon Vera KO’d Dominick Cruz – Round 4
- Nate Landwehr defeated David Onama – Unanimous Decision
- Yasmin Jauregui defeated Iasmin Lucindo – Unanimous Decision
- Azamat Murzakanov TKO’d Devin Clark – Round 3
- Priscila Cachoeira TKO’d Ariane Lipski – Round 1
- Gerald Meerschaert submitted Bruno Silva by guillotine choke – Round 3
Prelims
- Angela Hill defeated Loopy Godinez – Unanimous Decision
- Martin Buday defeated Lukasz Brzeski – Split Decision
- Nina Nines defeated Cynthia Calvillo – Split Decision
- Gabriel Benitez TKO’d Charlie Ontiveros – Round 1
- Tyson Nam KO’d Ode’ Osbourne – Round 1
- Josh Quinlan KO’d Jason Witt – Round 1
- Youssef Zalal and Da’Mon Blackshear fought to a Majority Draw
