Tag: Frankie Saenz

UFC on ESPN+ 31 post-event facts: Vicente Luque’s finishing ability stands out

All the notable stats to come out of UFC on ESPN+ 31, which took place in Las Vegas, and saw Derek Brunson beat Edmen Shahbazyan.

The UFC hosted another event on Saturday with UFC on ESPN+ 31, which took place at UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streamed on ESPN+.

[autotag]Derek Brunson[/autotag] (21-7 MMA, 12-5 UFC) pulled off an upset a 3-1 underdog in the main event when he derailed the hype around [autotag]Edmen Shahbazyan[/autotag] (11-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) with a third-round TKO win in the middleweight headliner.

Brunson’s victory concluded a rather unusual eight-fight card that featured a stunning amount of fight scratches in the days and hours leading up. For more on the numbers, check below for 25 post-event facts to come out of UFC on ESPN+ 31.

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General

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The UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payout for the event totaled $103,500.

Debuting fighters went 1-1-2 at the event.

[autotag]Jennifer Maia[/autotag], [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag], [autotag]Bobby Green[/autotag] and [autotag]Lando Vannata[/autotag] earned $50,000 UFC on ESPN+ 31 fight-night bonuses.

UFC on ESPN+ 31 drew an announced attendance of zero for a live gate of $0.

Betting favorites went 4-3 on the card. On fight ended in a raw.

Betting favorites fell to 14-7 in UFC headliners this year.

Total fight time for the eight-bout card was 1:35:48.

Main card

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Brunson’s 12 victories since 2012 in UFC middleweight competition are the most in the division.

Brunson’s eight stoppage victories in UFC middleweight competition are tied for fourth most in divisional history behind Anderson Silva (11), Nate Marquardt (nine) and Chris Leben (nine).

Brunson’s seven knockout victories in UFC middleweight competition are tied for third most in divisional history behind Silva (eight) and Thiago Santos (eight).

Shahbazyan had his 11-fight winning streak snapped for the first defeat of his career.

Maia (18-6-1 MMA, 3-2 UFC) earned her first submission victory since May 10, 2014 – a span of 2,275 days (more than six years) and 13 fights.

[autotag]Joanne Calderwood[/autotag] (14-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC) fell to 4-2 in UFC women’s flyweight competition. She’s 4-2 in her career at 125 pounds.

Calderwood has suffered all three of her career stoppage losses by first-round submission.

Calderwood became the ninth fighter in history to suffer multiple armbar submission losses in UFC competition.

Luque (19-7-1 MMA, 12-3 UFC) has earned 17 of his 19 career victories by stoppage. That includes 11 of his 12 UFC wins.

Luque’s 11 stoppage victories since 2015 in UFC welterweight competition are most in the division during that span.

Luque’s 11 stoppage victories in UFC welterweight competition are third most in divisional history behind Matt Brown (13) and Matt Hughes (12).

Luque’s eight knockout victories in UFC welterweight competition are tied with Thiago Alves for second most in divisional history behind Brown (11).

Vannata (11-5-2 MMA, 3-5-2 UFC) fell to 2-4-2 in his past eight UFC appearances dating back to March 2017.

Preliminary card

[autotag]Frankie Saenz[/autotag] (12-7 MMA, 5-5 UFC) fell to 2-5 in his past seven fights dating back to December 2015.

Saenz has suffered all four of his UFC stoppage losses by knockout.

[autotag]Johnny Munhoz[/autotag] (10-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) had his 10-fight winning streak snapped for the first defeat of his career.

[autotag]Chris Gutierrez[/autotag] (15-4-2 MMA, 3-1-1 UFC) vs. Cody Durden (11-2-1 MMA, 0-0-1 UFC) marked the first unanimous draw in UFC history without point deductions.

UFC research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on Twitter @MJCflipdascript.

UFC on ESPN+ 31 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Program total passes $34.5 million

UFC on ESPN+ 31 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that launched after the UFC’s deal with Reebok.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 31 event took home event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $103,500.

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+ 31 took place at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The entire card streamed ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN+ 31 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

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[autotag]Derek Brunson[/autotag]: $20,000
def. [autotag]Edmen Shahbazyan[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jennifer Maia[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Joanne Calderwood[/autotag]: $10,000

[autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag]: $10,000
def. [autotag]Randy Brown[/autotag]: $5,000

[autotag]Bobby Green[/autotag]: $15,000
def. [autotag]Lando Vannata[/autotag]: $5,000

[autotag]Jonathan Martinez[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Frankie Saenz[/autotag]: $5,000

[autotag]Nate Maness[/autotag]: $3,500
def. [autotag]Johnny Munhoz[/autotag]: $3,500

[autotag]Jamall Emmers[/autotag]: $3,500
def. [autotag]Vincent Cachero[/autotag]: $3,500

[autotag]Chris Gutierrez[/autotag]: $4,000
vs. [autotag]Cody Durden[/autotag]: $3,500

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Reebok’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 $3,500 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,000; 6-10 bouts get $5,000; 11-15 bouts earn $10,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $15,000; and 21 bouts and more get $20,000. Additionally, champions earn $40,000 while title challengers get $30,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2020 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $3,601,000
2019 total: $7,370,500
2018 total: $6,901,000
2017 total: $6,295,000
2016 total: $7,138,000
2015 total: $3,185,000
Program-to-date total: $34,605,500

Fight Tracks: The walkout songs of UFC on ESPN+ 31, where Motley Crue met AC/DC

Check out all the fighter walkout songs from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 31 event.

While it takes intense training, world-class skills and maybe even a bit of luck to register a UFC win, picking the right song to accompany you to the cage is a key talent, as well.

See what the fighters from UFC on ESPN+ 31 went with as their backing tracks in Las Vegas.

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Derek Brunson def. Edmen Shahbazyan via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 0:26

[autotag]Derek Brunson[/autotag]: “Victory Lap” by Nipsey Hussle feat. Stacy Barthe

[autotag]Edmen Shahbazyan[/autotag]: “Use This Gospel” by Kanye West

Jennifer Maia def. Joanne Calderwood via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 4:29

[autotag]Jennifer Maia[/autotag]: “TNT” by AC/DC

[autotag]Joanne Calderwood[/autotag]: “Kickstart My Heart” by Motley Crue

Vicente Luque def. Randy Brown via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:56

[autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag]: “Baby Baby” by Troopkillaz

[autotag]Randy Brown[/autotag]: “Dela Move” by Chronixx

Bobby Green def. Lando Vannata via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)

[autotag]Bobby Green[/autotag]: “White Friday” by Yo Gotti

[autotag]Lando Vannata[/autotag]: “On The Road” by Post Malone feat. Meek Mill & Lil Baby

Jonathan Martinez def. Frankie Saenz via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 0:57

[autotag]Jonathan Martinez[/autotag]: “El Papa De Los Pollitos” by Los Tucanes De Tijuana

[autotag]Frankie Saenz[/autotag]: “Calm Like A Bomb” by Rage Against The Machine

Nate Maness def. Johnny Munoz via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)

[autotag]Nate Maness[/autotag]: “Real” by NF

[autotag]Johnny Munoz[/autotag]: “El Rey” by Vincente Fernandez

Jamall Emmers def. Vincent Cachero via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

[autotag]Jamall Emmers[/autotag]: “Florida Boy” by Rick Ross

[autotag]Vincent Cachero[/autotag]: “Ooh LA LA” by Run The Jewels

Chris Gutierrez vs. Cody Durden ends in a unanimous draw (28-28, 28-28, 28-28)

[autotag]Chris Gutierrez[/autotag]: “Bandolero” by Don Omar feat. Tego Calderon

[autotag]Cody Durden[/autotag]: “Hail Mary” by Tupac

The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.

Frankie Saenz vs. Jonathan Martinez in the works for Aug. 1 UFC event

A bantamweight fight is in the works for August 1.

A bantamweight fight is in the works for Aug. 1.

The UFC currently is working on a matchup between [autotag]Frankie Saenz[/autotag] and [autotag]Jonathan Martinez[/autotag] for the first of five events it is expected to hold in Las Vegas next month.

Two people with knowledge of the situation informed MMA Junkie of the targeted booking Saturday but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

The 39-year-old Saenz (13-6 MMA, 5-4 UFC) has not competed since March 2019 when he lost to Marlon Vera by first-round TKO. Prior to that defeat, Saenz won back-to-back decisions over Henry Briones and Merab Dvalishvili.

Martinez (11-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC), 33, most recently competed at UFC 247 in February where he lost a controversial split decision to Andre Ewell. The defeat snapped a two-fight winning streak for Martinez, who was coming off wins over Wuliji Buren and Liu Pingyuan.

With the addition, the current Aug. 1 lineup includes:

  • Holly Holm vs. Irene Aldana
  • Derek Brunson vs. Edmen Shahbazyan
  • Markus Perez vs. Eric Spicely
  • Yana Kunitskaya vs. Ketlen Vieira
  • Trevin Giles vs. Jun Yong Park
  • Ed Herman vs. Da Un Jung
  • Randy Brown vs. Vicente Luque
  • Viviane Araujo vs. Jennifer Maia
  • Jonathan Martinez vs. Frankie Saenz

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