New postfight bonus system was financial decision, according to White
What made the UFC want to change its “Of the Night” bonus system? It was strictly a financial decision, says Dana White.
White told UFC Tonight’s Ariel Helwani that the UFC is on the books to give out $9.8 million in bonus money this year, so in order to guarantee that’s the amount spent they decided to make the criteria a little more vague. Even if there’s no knockout or submission – like at UFC 169 – two people will always win “Performance of the Night.”
White also said that a competitor would win “Fight of the Night” and “Performance of the Night” on the same card – double bonuses are still very much in play. “Knockout of the Night” and “Submission of the Night” are a thing of the past, though.
At UFC 169, there were just two knockouts and no submissions. Having “Performance of the Night” would have allowed someone who fought well in a decision to earn $50,000.
UFC women’s bantamweight Sara McMann, who meets Ronda Rousey for the title at UFC 170 on Feb. 22, said on a conference call Wednesday that she’s a big fan of the new structure.
“If you call it ‘Performance of the Night,’ it really opens it up for anybody who does something spectacular, something that people talk about to get a bonus,” McMann said.
