The last event of the year is done, and the UFC Vegas 66 results came in without little controversy, a stark contrast from UFC 282 last weekend. Of the 13 fights to make it to Saturday, nine went the distance of which all but the main event were scored a unanimous decision. After a preliminary card full of fights that went to a decision, the main card really ramped things up, and the athletes were properly rewarded. Check out who the big earners were from UFV Vegas 66.
Performance of the Night: Michal Oleksiejczuk and Alex Caceres
Opening the main card, Michal Oleksiejczuk and Cody Brundage met in a middleweight bout where Oleksiejczuk was a considerable favorite. It didn’t take him long to show why the betting window had his back as he countered Brundage’s takedown approach with heavy blows. The pace was quick for both fighters, but the power of Oleksiejczuk proved to be the perfect counter to Brundage’s wrestling approach. Landing 25 strikes to his opponent’s one, the Polish fighter won and scored the first knockout finish of the night, doing so in the first round.
Big finishes, big bonuses 👊
Alex Caceres and Michal Oleksiejczuk both earn Performance of the Night at #UFCVegas66!
(B2YB @ZipRecruiter) pic.twitter.com/oJjUdM7UjB
— UFC (@ufc) December 18, 2022
Oleksiejczuk set of a run of four early finishes on the night, and the only other first-round finish came two fights later with Alex Caceres facing Julian Erosa at Featherweight. Through the first couple of minutes, it was a fairly even fight with the two athletes trading blows. Things took a drastic turn when Caceres, the man nicknamed “Bruce Leeroy”, caught Erosa with a left leg kick that put his lights out. Caceres jumped on top of Erosa to finish the job and force the fight to be waived off. For their stunning finishes, both Oleksiejczuk and Caceres picked up $50,000 Performance of the Night bonuses in the UFC Vegas 66 results.
Fight of the Night: Drew Dober vs Bobby Green
There was talk leading into the week that Drew Dober and Bobby Green could deliver a Fight of the Night, and boy did they. Green came out in the first round swinging, landing 39 significant strikes to Dober’s 17. He looked to be well on his way to collecting a finish in the UFC Vegas 66 results, continuing that pace into the second round before Dober did the unthinkable.
With Green pressed against the cage, Dober was swinging left hook after left hook before one connected with the chin of Green, sending him to the mat and ending the fight. It was the most stunning of the UFC Vegas 66 results and well deserving of the Fight of the Night. Both Dober and Green received a $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus with their event paychecks.
UFC 66 Payouts – Venum Sponsorship Bonuses (based on number of fights in the UFC)
*Per the UFC Promotional Guidelines
- $4,000 (1-3 fights): Rinat Fakhretdinov (2), Maheshate (2), Saidyokub Kakhramonov (3), Alessandro Costa (debut)
- $4,500 (4-5 fights): Sergey Morozov (5), Journey Newson (5), David Dvorak (5), Manel Kape (5), Bryan Battle (4), Cheyanne Vlismas (4), Cory McKenna (4), Cody Brundage (4), Amir Albazi (4)
- $6,000 (6-10 fights): Rafa Garcia (6), Said Nurmagomedov (7), Matthew Semelsberger (7), Michal Oleksiejczuk (10), Arman Tsarukyan (8), Damir Ismagulov (6)
- $11,000 (11-15 fights): Julian Erosa (12), Jared Cannonier (15)
- $16,000 (16-20 fights): Jake Matthews (17), Drew Dober (20), Bobby Green (20), Sean Strickland (17)
- $21,000 (21+ fights): Alex Caceres (27)
UFC Vegas 66 Results
Main Card
- Jared Cannonier defeated Sean Strickland by split decision.
- Arman Tsarukyan defeated Damir Ismagulov by unanimous decision.
- Amir Albazi KO’d Alessandro Costa at 2:13 in Round 3.
- Alex Caceres TKO’d Julian Erosa at 3:04 in Round 1.
- Drew Dober KO’d Bobby Green at 2:45 in Round 2.
- Michal Oleksiejczuk TKO’d Cody Brundage at 3:16 in Round 1.
Preliminary Card
- Cory McKenna defeated Cheyanne Vlismas by unanimous decision.
- Matthew Semelsberger defeated Jake Matthews by unanimous decision.
- Said Nurmagomedov submitted Saidyokub Kakhramonov at 3:50 in Round 2.
- Rafa Garcia defeated Maheshate by unanimous decision.
- Rinat Fakhretdinov defeated Bryan Battle by unanimous decision,
- Manel Kape defeated David Dvorak by unanimous decision.
- Sergey Morozov defeated Journey Newson by unanimous decision.
