Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Gillian Robertson won for the second time in three fights since her return to strawweight – both of which have been post-fight bonus winners.
TORONTO – [autotag]Gillian Robertson[/autotag] beat Polyana Viana with a second-round TKO Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC 297 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.
Take a look inside the fight with Robertson, who won for the second time in three fights since her return to strawweight – both of which have been post-fight bonus winners.
Analysis of the biggest storylines coming out of UFC 297, including whether Sean Strickland being dethroned is a relief to the UFC brass.
What mattered most at UFC 297 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto? Here are a few post-fight musings …
The best facts to come out of UFC 297, which saw two new champions crowned with historic achievements attached to both new reigns.
The UFC’s first pay-per-view of the year is likely to prove to be far from the most memorable, but UFC 297 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto did prove significant with two new champions crowned.
In the main event, [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] (21-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) edged [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (28-6 MMA, 15-6 UFC) by split decision in the Fight of the Night to claim the middleweight championship. In the co-headliner, [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] (16-8 MMA, 13-5 UFC) outlasted [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] (10-3-1 MMA, 5-3-1 UFC) for a unanimous decision for the vacant women’s bantamweight title.
For more on the numbers behind the title fights, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts for UFC 297.
Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 297 took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $285,500.
TORONTO – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 297 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $285,500.
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 297 took place at Scotiabank Arena in Canada. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.
The full UFC 297 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
* * * *
[autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag]: $42,000
[autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag]: $32,000
[autotag]Neil Magny[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Mike Malott[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Chris Curtis[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Marc-Andre Barriault[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Movsar Evloev[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Arnold Allen[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Garrett Armfield[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Brad Katona[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Sean Woodson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Charles Jourdain[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Ramon Taveras[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Serhiy Sidey[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Gillian Robertson[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Polyana Viana[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Sam Patterson[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Yohan Lainesse[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Jasmine Jasudavicius[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Priscila Cachoeira[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Jimmy Flick[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Malcolm Gordon[/autotag]: $6,000
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 $4,500; 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 $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.
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 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Year-to-date total: $445,000
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $23,152,000
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.
Check out what the UFC 297 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event in Toronto.
TORONTO – UFC 297 took place Saturday with 12 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.
You can hear from all the UFC 297 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.
Gillian Robertson had her way with Polyana Viana on the canvas, forcing a TKO stoppage in the second round at UFC 297.
When the fight hits the mat, [autotag]Gillian Robertson[/autotag] is one of the most dangerous fighters in the UFC’s strawweight division.
On the prelims of UFC 297, Robertson (13-8 MMA, 10-6 UFC) took the fight into her world and dominated Polyana Viana on the ground. Robertson had her choice of staying in mount and raining down elbows, or going for another submission attempt on Viana (13-7 MMA, 4-6 UFC). She chose the former, forcing the referee to stop the fight at 3:12 of Round 2.
After clearly taking the first round by winning scrambles and offering multiple submission attempts, Robertson found herself in more advantageous positions on the ground in the next frame. She decided position over submission, ultimately leading the grappler to just her second TKO stoppage.
Check out video of the finish below (via X):
Gillian Robertson with a shutdown TKO 💪#UFC297 is LIVE NOW on ESPN 📺 pic.twitter.com/oQM7Fef7Mp
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) January 21, 2024
During her post-fight interview, Robertson made her case to face a ranked opponent in her next outing.
“I need to be ranked, I need to show the world what I’m capable of,” Robertson told UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier.
The result marked a return to the win column for Robertson, who entered on the heels of a unanimous decision loss to Tabatha Ricci. Prior to that setback, the grappling specialist picked up back-to-back second-round submissions of Mariya Agapova (rear-naked choke) and Piera Rodriguez (armbar).
Up-to-the-minute UFC 297 results include:
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 297.
Check out the best photos from Gillian Robertson’s second-round TKO win over Polyana Viana at UFC 297 in Toronto.
Check out the best photos from [autotag]Gillian Robertson[/autotag]’s second-round TKO win over [autotag]Polyana Viana[/autotag] at UFC 297 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. (Photos by Dan Hamilton, USA Today Sports)
The best facts and figures about UFC 297, which sees Dricus Du Plessis’ strong offense put Sean Strickland’s record defense to the test.
The UFC on Saturday returns to Toronto for the first time since December 2018 with UFC 297 at Scotiabank Arena.
The first numbered event of the year features a title fight doubleheader. In the main event, [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (28-5 MMA, 15-5 UFC) will attempt to defend the middleweight title against [autotag]Dricus Du Plessis[/autotag] (20-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC. In the co-headliner, [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] (15-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) and [autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag] (10-2-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) are set to clash for the vacant women’s bantamweight belt.
For more on the numbers behind all four championship competitors, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts for UFC 297 (pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
All the UFC and Bellator 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 or Bellator.
Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Oct. 9-15.
Josh Emmett and Justin Tafa suffered graphic injuries at UFC on ABC 5 and are among those suspended indefinitely by the Florida commission.
UFC on ABC 5 took place Saturday at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla. and featured 13 fights.
There were back-and-forth battles, knockouts, an eye gouge, and a submission. Through these fights, the athletes involved sustained injuries that will put them on the shelf for some time, unless cleared by a doctor.
Tuesday, MMA Junkie acquired a list of athlete medical suspensions from the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), the sanctioning body that oversaw the event. The DBPR does not disclose injury specifics, but does show the durations of the suspension.
Atop the card, [autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag] proved he’s a premiere contender when he dominated [autotag]Josh Emmett[/autotag] en route to a unanimous decision, including a rare 10-7 scorecard. The two headliners were suspended indefinitely by DBPR afterward.
Seven fighters total were handed indefinite suspensions, while two were handed terms of specific durations and the rest of the card was cleared on fight night. Fighters are permitted to return prior to the end of their assigned durations if they are cleared by a doctor.
Scroll below to see the suspensions for the full UFC on ABC 5 card.
