Charles Oliveira Breaks UFC Record with Most Awarded Post-Fight Prize Money Bonuses
Charles Oliveira made history with his first-round TKO of Beneil Dariush at UFC 289 on Saturday.
The Brazilian earned a Performance of the Night bonus along with Mike Malott and Steve Erceg. MMA Fighting's Jed Meshew noted his 19 career post-fight bonuses are the most ever for a UFC fighter.
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Oliveira landed more than twice as many signature strikes (26) as Dariush (12), and all but three of those targeted his opponent's head. He opened the fight by connecting on a head kick, and that set the tone for the brief encounter.
It was an emphatic statement from the 33-year-old coming off his second-round submission defeat to Islam Makhachev at UFC 280 last October. Makhachev tried to rain on his parade a little bit on social media.
A rematch may not be too long in the offing.
Oliveira entered Saturday night as the No. 1-ranked challenger in the lightweight division, and UFC president Dana White already tipped his hand as to Makhachev's next title defense. He said he's intrigued by the idea of a return bout with Oliveira but stopped short of confirming the matchup.
On that occasion, Oliveira would probably be happy to bypass a 20th post-fight bonus if it meant regaining the lightweight title.
