Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Dennis Buzukja got his first win in the UFC, as well as his first bonus, with a third-round TKO against Connor Matthews at UFC on ESPN 54.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – [autotag]Dennis Buzukja[/autotag] beat Connor Matthews with a third-round TKO Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC on ESPN 54 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.
Take a look inside the fight with Buzukja, who got his first win in the UFC, as well as his first bonus.
UFC on ESPN 54 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 54 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $173,000.
The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.
UFC on ESPN 54 took place at Boardwalk Hall. The main card aired on ESPN following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.
The full UFC on ESPN 54 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
* * * *
[autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Erin Blanchfield[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Joaquin Buckley[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag]: $21,000
[autotag]Chris Weidman[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Bruno Silva[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Nursulton Ruziboev[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Sedriques Dumas[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Kyle Nelson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Bill Algeo[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Chidi Njokuani[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Rhys McKee[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Nate Landwehr[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jamall Emmers[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Virna Jandiroba[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Loopy Godinez[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Julio Arce[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Herbert Burns[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Dennis Buzukja[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Connor Matthews[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Ibo Aslan[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Anton Turkalj[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Jacob Malkoun[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Andre Petroski[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Caolan Loughran[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Angel Pacheco[/autotag]: $4,000
Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,540; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $54,000 while title challengers get $54,000.
In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-54 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.
Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Year-to-date total: $1,842,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $24,579,500
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 54.
Check out live play-by-play and official results from UFC on ESPN 54 in Atlantic City.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – UFC on ESPN 54 took place Saturday, and MMA Junkie live play-by-play and official results. UFC on ESPN 54 (ESPN/ESPN+) took place at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.
In the main event, Erin Blanchfield (12-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) took on Manon Fiorot (12-1 MMA, 7-0 UFC) in a likely women’s flyweight title eliminator. Joaquin Buckley (18-6 MMA, 8-4 UFC) took on Vicente Luque (22-10-1 MMA, 15-6 UFC) in the welterweight co-feature, and former middleweight champion Chris Weidman (16-7 MMA, 11-7 UFC) returned against Bruno Silva (23-11 MMA, 4-5 UFC).
Below, you can check out the results and play-by-play from UFC on ESPN 54.
Dennis Buzukja picked up his first UFC win with a beautifully placed left hook in the third round at UFC on ESPN 54.
[autotag]Dennis Buzukja[/autotag] capped off an impressive performance with a statement finish for his first UFC victory.
On the prelims of UFC on ESPN 54 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J., Buzukja (12-4 MMA, 1-2 UFC) closed the show against the debuting Connor Matthews by landing a beautiful left hook on the temple.
The shot caused Matthews (7-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) to fall to the canvas, and the follow-up punches from Buzukja led to a TKO stoppage at 0:22 of Round 3.
Check out video of the finish below (via X):
THAT LEFT HOOK WAS CLEAN FROM DENNIS BUZUKJA 😮💨 #UFCAtlanticCity pic.twitter.com/zSSAyV7hKJ
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 31, 2024
The third time was the charm for Buzukja, who dropped his first two UFC outings. His first win in the promotion will be one he won’t soon forget, as it came close to his hometown of Staten Island, N.Y.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 54 results include:
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 54.
Check out the best photos from Dennis Buzukja’s third-round TKO win over Connor Matthews at UFC on ESPN 54.
Check out the best photos from [autotag]Dennis Buzukja[/autotag]’s third-round TKO win over [autotag]Connor Matthews[/autotag] at UFC on ESPN 54 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J. (Fight and venue photos by Ed Mulholland, USA Today Sports)
The UFC on ESPN 54 weigh-ins ended oddly as Julio Arce somehow gained 0.25 pounds between attempts and his team was scratching their heads.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – Ahead of Saturday’s fights at Boardwalk Hall, the 28 fighters involved in UFC on ESPN 54 hit the scales at the host hotel. One missed weight.
Atop the event, which airs on ESPN/ESPN+, is a pivotal women’s flyweight main event between top contenders [autotag]Erin Blanchfield[/autotag] (12-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) and [autotag]Manon Fiorot[/autotag] (11-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC).
In the co-main event, welterweight standouts [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] (22-9-1 MMA, 15-5 UFC) and [autotag]Joaquin Buckley[/autotag] (17-6 MMA, 7-4 UFC) collide. Also on the card, former UFC middleweight champion [autotag]Chris Weidman[/autotag] (15-7 MMA, 11-7 UFC) attempts to reenter the win column against [autotag]Bruno Silva[/autotag] (23-10 MMA, 4-4 UFC).
All of those fighters made weight, but one from the prelims. [autotag]Julio Arce[/autotag] missed the featherweight limit after previously missing at bantamweight in April 2022. He was given two attempts and gained 0.25 pounds between attempts.
Arce’s re-weigh was the last weigh-in of the day. A different New Jersey State Athletic Commission (NJSAC) representative than who weighed in the other 27 fighters and Arce’s first attempt, weighed in Arce the second time. This caused further frustration and disbelief from Arce’s team, who said they had weighed 146 on their own scale. Arce was fined 20 percent of his purse and the fight will continue as scheduled.
It's official! Erin Blanchfield and Manon Fiorot have made weight for the #UFCAtlanticCity main event. High stakes in this one. pic.twitter.com/dxJb1QFNbQ
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) March 29, 2024
[lawrence-related id=2728381]
Check out the full UFC on ESPN 54 weigh-ins results below:
MAIN CARD (ESPN, 10 p.m. ET)
PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET)
* Arce missed featherweight limit by 1 pound; 20 percent fine
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 54.
All the UFC fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.
MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.
But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.
Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC.
Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Jan. 1-7.
Another bout has been added to UFC Atlantic City as featherweights Connor Matthews and Dennis Buzukja collide.
[autotag]Connor Matthews[/autotag] has his first UFC assignment and it’s a member of Longo and Weidman MMA.
At the upcoming UFC event on March 30 in Atlantic City, N.J., Matthews (7-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will take on [autotag]Dennis Buzukja[/autotag] (11-4 MMA, 0-2 UFC) in a featherweight bout.
Two people with knowledge of the matchup recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Matthews, 31, joined the UFC after consecutive wins on “Dana White: Lookin’ for a Fight” and Dana White’s Contender Series. Matthews is a member of the New England Cartel and has five submission victories in seven wins.
Buzukja, 26, seeks his first promotional victory since signing with the UFC. He lost his debut vs. Sean Woodson by unanimous decision, then returned in November and was quickly finished by Jamall Emmers. Buzukja has four TKOs in 11 pro wins.
With the addition, the UFC Atlantic City lineup includes:
Nineteen indefinite suspensions were handed out after UFC 295, per the New York State Athletic Commission.
UFC 295 took place Nov. 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York and featured 13 fights.
On Monday, MMA Junkie acquired a list of athlete medical suspensions from the New York State Athletic Commission, the sanctioning body that oversaw the event. Most injury specifics were not disclosed.
Nineteen of the 26 combatants were given indefinite suspensions and will need to be cleared by a doctor before they return. That’s a high number of indefinite suspensions compared to the average UFC event, although the NYSAC may have different safety protocols compared to other regulatory bodies. All 26 fighters were also given mandatory suspensions, which vary from seven days to 90 days.
Check out the full list of medical suspensions from UFC 295 below.
The best facts from UFC 295, which saw Alex Pereira join the two-division title club in less fights than the eight names before him.
The UFC’s penultimate numbered event of the year, UFC 295 from Madison Square Garden in New York, proved to be arguably the best of the bunch.
Two new champions were crowned to close out a lineup that saw eight stoppages in 13 fights. In the main event, [autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 6-1 UFC) picked up the vacant light heavyweight title with a second-round knockout of [autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag] (29-4-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC), while [autotag]Tom Aspinall[/autotag] (14-3 MMA, 7-1 UFC) claimed the interim heavyweight strap in the co-main event with a 69-second knockout of [autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag] (17-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC).
For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC 295.
