Tristan Connelly’s short-notice Octagon debut proved to be quite lucrative.
Connelly pocketed a $100,000 “Fight of the Night” bonus for his unanimous decision victory over Michel Pereira in a featured welterweight affair at UFC Fight Night 164 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, on Saturday night. While the fighters would normally split the award, Connelly received the entirety of the bonus due to Pereira failing to make weight on Friday. A last-minute replacement for Sergey Khadozhko, Connelly weathered the flashy moves of his Brazilian foe early to sweep the judges’ scorecards.
Meanwhile, Justin Gaethje garnered a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” paycheck thanks to a technical knockout of Donald Cerrone in the evening’s lightweight main event.