Ketlen Souza wanted to play spoiler against Yazmin Jauregui at UFC 306, and it went to perfection

Ketlen Souza picked up the first $50,000 bonus of her UFC career with a first-round submission upset at Sphere in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag] beat Yazmin Jauregui with a first-round technical submission Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas.

Take a look inside the fight with Souza, who picked up the first $50,000 bonus of her UFC career for the upset.

Ketlen Souza def. Yazmin Jauregui

Sep 14, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Yazmin Jauregui of Mexico (red gloves) fights Ketlen Souza of Brazil (blue gloves) during Riyadh Season Noche UFC 306 at The Sphere. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Result: Ketlen Souza def. Yazmin Jauregui via technical submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:02
Updated records: Souza (15-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC), Jauregui (11-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC)
Key stats: Souza was an underdog of around 4-1 and got her first submission win in 6.5 years.

Souza on the fight’s key moment

Sep 14, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Yazmin Jauregui of Mexico (red gloves) fights Ketlen Souza of Brazil (blue gloves) during Riyadh Season Noche UFC 306 at The Sphere. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

“My intention was to come and spoil the Independence Day (celebration) for Mexico, and I’m glad I got the victory. … That was the intention – to come out quickly, and we executed this strategy and happy we got the win.”

Souza on taking a low blow from Jauregui

Sep 14, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Yazmin Jauregui of Mexico (red gloves) fights Ketlen Souza of Brazil (blue gloves) during Riyadh Season Noche UFC 306 at The Sphere. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

“This was actually the first time that I got hit that way. I didn’t realize it hurt so bad, but it’s something that doesn’t happen that often. I don’t know. It’s just normal, I guess. As far as I know, there is no protection for women on the genital area, but I think maybe it could be a change (for uniform rules for women).”

Souza on fighting at Sphere

“You know, The fact that it’s something unique, maybe it’s something that we never see again, maybe there might not be another UFC event at the Sphere, so I’m very happy to be part of it and very happy with the win I got.”

To hear more from Souza, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 306.

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UFC 306 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: O’Malley, Grasso net $42,000 for entering as champs

Sean O’Malley and Alexa Grasso got the biggest checks from the Promotional Guidelines Compliance program fro UFC 306, which paid $239,500.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC 306 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $239,500.

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 306 took place at Sphere. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.

The full UFC 306 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag]: $42,000

[autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag]: $32,000
def. [autotag]Alexa Grasso[/autotag]: $42,000

[autotag]Diego Lopes[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Brian Ortega[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Esteban Ribovics[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Daniel Zellhuber[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Ronaldo Rodriguez[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Ode Osbourne[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Norma Dumont[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Irene Aldana[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Ignacio Bahamondes[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Manuel Torres[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Yazmin Jauregui[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Joshua Van[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Edgar Chairez[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Raul Rosas Jr.[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Aori Qileng[/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: $5,721,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $28,458,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 306.

Ketlen Souza def. Yazmin Jauregui at UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Ketlen Souza’s first-round technical submission win over Yazmin Jauregui at UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag]’s first-round technical submission win over [autotag]Yazmin Jauregui[/autotag] at UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas. (Fight and venue photos by Stephen R. Sylvanie, USA Today Sports)

UFC 306 video: Ketlen Souza chokes Yazmin Jauregui out cold in Round 1

Ketlen Souza clubbed and subbed her way to victory at UFC 306.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag] clubbed and subbed her way to victory at UFC 306.

Souza (15-4 MMA, 2-1 UFC) dropped [autotag]Yazmin Jauregui[/autotag] (11-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) with a thunderous left hook and jumped on a rear-naked choke to put the Mexican to sleep at the 3:02 mark of Round 1 Saturday at Sphere.

Check out the replay of Souza’s finish below (via X):

After dropping her UFC debut to Karine Silva, Souza has rebounded with back-to-back wins over Marnic Mann, and an upset finish of Jauregui.

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Up-to-the-minute UFC 306 results include:

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 306.

Yazmin Jauregui vs. Ketlen Souza added to Noche UFC at Sphere in Las Vegas

Mexico’s Yazmin Jauregui gets her wish to fight at Noche UFC on Sept. 14.

[autotag]Yazmin Juuregui[/autotag] is getting her wish.

The UFC strawweight prospect will be fighting on Sept. 14 at Noche UFC – the event set to go down at Sphere in Las Vegas to celebrate Mexican Independence Day. Jauregui, a Tijuana native, is scheduled to fight Brazil’s [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag].

MMA Junkie confirmed the news following a report by ESPN Deportes on Wednesday. The UFC has yet to officially announce the bout.

Jauregui, who told MMA Junkie last month she was hoping to get booked at Noche UFC, will look to follow up on a unanimous decision win over Sam Hughes this past February in Mexico City. The win over Hughes marked her first victory since her first professional defeat in July 2023.

Souza last fought in April where she picked up a unanimous decision win over Marnic Mann. The 28-year-old is a former Invicta FC flyweight champion who joined the UFC in June 2023.

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Ketlen Souza unwilling to take breaks after scoring first octagon win at UFC on ESPN 55

Ketlen Souza won’t take any time to soak in the success of her first octagon win after UFC on ESPN 55.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag] won’t take any time to soak in the success of her first octagon win after UFC on ESPN 55.

After falling short in her promotional debut vs. Karine Silva in June, Souza got her hand raised in her sophomore appearance on Saturday when she outworked Marnic Mann to a unanimous decision in their strawweight bout at the UFC Apex.

Souza was able to land 80 significant strikes over three rounds compared to just 31 for her opponent, and she was confident coming in that boxing would be a key to victory.

“Not a surprise to me – I like to box,” Souza told MMA Junkie and other reporters through an interpreter post-fight at UFC on ESPN 55. “That’s what I like to do. I always thought she was able to counter it, and it didn’t come. I was happy with what I got.”

Souza was forced to sit on her debut loss for nearly 10 months and stew over it. She doesn’t want that much time to reflect on the win over Mann, and would prefer to get back in the cage in short order.

“I want to be back as soon as possible,” Souza said. “I’ll be back Monday training. This is not the time to take a vacation or take a break. It’s the moment for me to be training, fighting and coming back.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 55.

UFC on ESPN 55 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Program total passes $25 million

UFC on ESPN 55 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 55 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $175,000.

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 55 took place at the UFC Apex. The card aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN 55 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Alex Perez[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Matheus Nicolau[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Bogdan Guskov[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Ariane Da Silva[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Jhonata Diniz[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Austen Lane[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]David Onama[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jonathan Pearce[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Uros Medic[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Tim Means[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Victor Henry[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Rani Yahya[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Austin Hubbard[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Michal Figlak[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Don’Tale Mayes[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Caio Machado[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Marnic Mann[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Chris Padilla[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]James Llontop[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Ivana Petrovic[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Na Liang[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Hayisaer Maheshate[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Gabriel Benitez[/autotag]: $11,000

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 $4,550; 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 $55,000 while title challengers get $55,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-55 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $2,640,000
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $25,377,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 55.

UFC fight card lineup announced for April 27, including Ryan Spann vs. Bogdan Guskov

Ryan Spann has twice fought Anthony Smith – and now the UFC has given him his doppelganger.

The full fight card for the UFC Fight Night event April 27 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas has been revealed.

With a flyweight main event between Manel Kape and Matheus Nicolau already announced, the co-main event will feature a light heavyweight showdown between [autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag] and [autotag]Bogdan Guskov[/autotag].

Promotion officials made the 13-fight lineup official Thursday. Spann (21-9 MMA, 7-4 UFC) vs. Guskov (15-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) was one of two fights not previously reported. The other was a women’s strawweight matchup between former Invicta champion [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag] (13-4 MMA, 0-1 UFC) and Dana White’s Contender Series alumnus [autotag]Marnic Mann[/autotag] (6-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC).

Spann, 32, looks to snap a two-fight skid as he enters the matchup off consecutive losses to Nikita Krylov and Anthony Smith. Now, Spann faces the man many people think resembles Smith.

Guskov, 31, has split his UFC appearances to date. He made his promotional debut against ranked opposition in Volkan Oezdemir and lost the bout by first-round rear-naked choke. In February, Guskov picked up his first UFC victory with a first-round knockout of Zac Pauga.

The UFC Fight Night lineup for April 27 includes:

  • Manel Kape vs. Matheus Nicolau
  • Bogdan Guskov vs. Ryan Spann
  • Ariane Lipski vs. Karine Silva
  • Tim Means vs. Uros Medic
  • Joel Alvarez vs. Mateusz Rebecki
  • Victor Henry vs. Rani Yahya
  • Caio Machado vs. Don’Tale Mayes
  • Gabriel Benitez vs. Maheshate
  • Marnic Mann vs. Ketlen Souza
  • Liang Na vs. Ivana Petrovic
  • Gabe Green vs. James Llontop
  • Jhonata Diniz vs. Austen Lane
  • Michal Figlak vs. Austin Hubbard

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night for April 27.

UFC on ESPN 45 post-event facts: Is Jim Miller’s record resume UFC Hall of Fame worthy?

Check out the facts and stats to come out of UFC on ESPN 45, where Jim Miller continued to stack historic figures on his resume.

The UFC opened a non-stop schedule of summer events on Saturday with UFC on ESPN 45, which took place at the promotion’s home base of the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The main event saw [autotag]Amir Albazi[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) remain undefeated inside the octagon and take the next step as a flyweight contender when he edged [autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag] (24-1 MMA, 7-4 UFC) by split decision.

There were a number of other noteworthy results on the card. For more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC on ESPN 45.

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UFC on ESPN 45 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Program total passes $18 million

UFC on ESPN 45 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 45 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $199,500.

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 45 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card aired on ESPN following prelims streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN 45 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Amir Albazi[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Alex Caceres[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Daniel Pineda[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Jim Miller[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Jesse Butler[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Tim Elliott[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Victor Altamirano[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Daniel Santos[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Johnny Munoz[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Don’Tale Mayes[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]John Castaneda[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Muin Gafurov[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Muhammad Naimov[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Jamie Mullarkey[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Elise Reed[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jinh Yu Frey[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Da’Mon Blackshear[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Luan Lacerda[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Philipe Lins[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Maxim Grishin[/autotag]: $4,500

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 $45,000 while title challengers get $45,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-45 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $3,414,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $18,003,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 45.