Diego Lopes gave Movsar Evloev a tougher test than anyone could have imagined, and both fighter’s bank accounts benefitted as a result.
Evloev and Lopes garnered “Fight of the Night” honors and $50,000 apiece for their entertaining featherweight feature bout at UFC 288 on Saturday night. Lopes, who accepted the bout on less than a week’s notice, rocked his foe with a right hand early and threatened with multiple submission attempts throughout the fight. Ultimately, Evloev prevailed via unanimous decision behind superior striking, pressure and wrestling.
Elsewhere, Xiaonan Yan earned a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus for her first-round knockout of Jessica Andrade in a strawweight clash on the main card.