Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Check out the latest episode of MMA Junkie Radio with “Gorgeous” George and “Goze.”
Monday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio with “Gorgeous” George and “Goze” is here.
On Episode 3,448, the guys welcome in rising UFC star Payton Talbott. They also discuss the results of the weekend’s fights at UFC on ESPN 53 and Bellator Champions Series: Belfast. Tune in!
UFC prospect Payton Talbott would like to fight former champion Dominick Cruz next.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Payton Talbott[/autotag] hopes his latest win in the octagon gets him some big opportunities.
The undefeated bantamweight made a big statement Saturday when he viciously stopped fellow prospect Cameron Saaiman on the main card of UFC on ESPN 53 at the UFC Apex. Talbott (8-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) is hoping this gets him a fight in an arena and in front of a crowd next, as well as maybe even a big-name opponent.
“I don’t really know too many people in my division, but maybe Dominick Cruz,” Talbott said at the UFC on ESPN 53 post-fight press conference when asked about whom he’d like to face next.
Talbott thinks the win over Saaiman (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) should show the MMA world he’s primed for big things.
“I’m exponentially passing up the rankings, and I’m going to try to get into the top 15 hopefully pretty soon,” Talbott said.
Talbott’s ultimate goal is to fight for the UFC bantamweight title. He knows there’s work to be done, but has no problem putting in the miles.
“I just need to keep having performances like that, do my dirty work and just keep beating dogs like that,” Talbott said. “Now I need to put my time in and solidify myself against game opponents, and I’m more than willing to do that.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.
UFC on ESPN 53 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 53 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $148,000.
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 53 took place at the UFC Apex. The card aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.
The full UFC on ESPN 53 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
* * * *
[autotag]Rose Namajunas[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Amanda Ribas[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Karl Williams[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Justin Tafa[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Edmen Shahbazyan[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]AJ Dobson[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Payton Talbott[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Cameron Saaiman[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Youssef Zalal[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Billy Quarantillo[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Fernando Padilla[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Luis Pajuelo[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Trey Ogden[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Kurt Holobaugh[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Julian Erosa[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Ricardo Ramos[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Miles Johns[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Cody Gibson[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Jarno Errens[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Steven Nguyen[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Dariya Zheleznyakova[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Montserrat Rendon[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Andre Lima[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Igor Severino[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Mick Parkin[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Mohammed Usman[/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 $4,530; 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 $53,000 while title challengers get $53,000.
In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-53 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.
Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Year-to-date total: $1,669,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $24,406,500
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.
Check out what the UFC on ESPN 53 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event.
LAS VEGAS – UFC on ESPN 53 took place Saturday with 13 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
You can hear from all the UFC on ESPN 53 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.
Payton Talbott kept his undefeated record in tact by stopping Cameron Saaiman with strikes at UFC on ESPN 53.
[autotag]Payton Talbott[/autotag] maintained his undefeated record with a beautiful performance against Cameron Saaiman at UFC on ESPN 53.
The bantamweight main card bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas nearly didn’t see a second round, but Talbott (8-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) ensured it ended there after dropping Saaiman (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) with a hard left hook. The follow-up strikes on led to a TKO finish at 0:21 in Round 2.
The fight was Talbott’s from the moment it began.
In the first round, the Las Vegas native Talbott patiently picked off Saaiman with accurate strikes throughout. Anything he threw landed effectively, and after a flurry of strikes in Round 1, he nearly ended the fight. Somehow, Saaiman did just enough to keep the referee away.
However, early in Round 2, Talbott connected with a sharp left hand to drop the South African, ultimately leading to the finish soon after.
PURE DOMINANCE FROM PAYTON TALBOTT 👊 #UFCVegas89 pic.twitter.com/M437nozeeD
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 24, 2024
Talbott has been very impressive early in his UFC career. The Dana White’s Contender Series veteran has finished both of his opponents: Nick Aguirre by third-round submission and Saaiman by second-round TKO.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 53 results include:
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.
Ahead of UFC on ESPN 53, Payton Talbott says if he gets to superstar status, expect the fame to change him … at least a little.
LAS VEGAS – Is fortune and glory going to change [autotag]Payton Talbott[/autotag]?
The diplomatic answer for the 25-year-old bantamweight, of course, is to say he’ll stay the same. After all, that’s how it’s been so far.
“Not too much (has changed since I got into the UFC),” Talbott said at Wednesday’s media day for UFC on ESPN 53 (ESPN/ESPN+). “I feel like I prioritize my career more. I’ve definitely put a lot more time into that, as well as expression of what I want to put out on the internet and everything. But everything else has pretty much been the same.
“It was after my first (UFC) win is when there’s just been more people that notice me.”
Talbott (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) on Saturday meets Cameron Saaiman (9-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) on the UFC on ESPN 53 main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. He’ll be looking to stay unbeaten against what arguably will be his toughest opponent yet, at least on paper.
For Talbott, a win like that will keep him on a path toward prospect status, and then he can start thinking about what will happen if he becomes a star.
Honesty is a great thing.
“I mean, the money is going to change me. Like – I’ll just tell you right now,” Talbott said. “But I’ll still be myself and I’ll have my core values and try to compete as much as possible. I’m not worried about it. I don’t think I’m going to change into a terrible person.”
Check out Talbott’s full media day interview in the video above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 53.
Check out the UFC, PFL, and Bellator fights 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, PFL, and Bellator.
Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Jan. 29-Feb. 4.
Rising bantamweight prospects Cameron Saaiman and Payton Talbott will square off in March.
Rising bantamweight prospects will square off in March.
[autotag]Cameron Saaiman[/autotag] (9-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) takes on [autotag]Payton Talbott[/autotag] (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) at a UFC Fight Night event March 23 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Both fighters confirmed the news on social media after an initial report by MMA Fighting.
Saaiman, a training partner of UFC middleweight champion Dricus Du Plessis, suffered his first-career setback this past October to Christian Rodriguez. Prior to that, the 23-year-old Dana White’s Contender Series graduate won his first three UFC fights, two by finish.
Talbott, also a DWCS graduate, impressed in his octagon debut when he notched his first-career submission of Nick Aguirre at UFC Fight Night 232. The undefeated 25-year-old has finished all but one of his professional wins
With the addition, the UFC’s March 23 lineup now includes:
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for the UFC Fight Night event on March 23
Dana White’s Contender Series product Payton Talbott won his UFC debut with a third-round submission of Nick Aguirre at UFC Fight Night 232.
LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Payton Talbott[/autotag] beat Nick Aguirre with a third-round submission Saturday on the main card at UFC Fight Night 232 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Talbott, a Dana White’s Contender Series product who won his UFC debut.
Check out all the facts from UFC Fight Night 232, which saw Brendan Allen put him name in the books with Royce Gracie and Demian Maia.
The UFC closed its November schedule on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 232, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and saw 10 of 14 fights end in a stoppage.
One of those finishes belonged to main event winner [autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] (23-5 MMA, 11-2 UFC), who submitted [autotag]Paul Craig[/autotag] (17-7-1 MMA, 9-7-1 UFC) with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their middleweight clash, extending his winning streak to six and putting him in the discussion among the more serious contenders in the weight class.
For more on the numbers behind Allen’s performance, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 232.
