Tag: Zac Pauga

UFC on ESPN 40 post-event facts: Sam Alvey’s winless skid sets all-time record

UFC on ESPN 40 was a historic card with all finishes, but Sam Alvey left with a dubious record attached to his name.

UFC opened its August schedule in historic fashion on Saturday. UFC on ESPN 40 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas featured a finish in all 10 fights.

The main event needed the additional rounds, however, because [autotag]Jamahal Hill[/autotag] (11-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) battled with [autotag]Thiago Santos[/autotag] (22-11 MMA, 14-10 UFC) in the fourth frame before securing a TKO stoppage that continued to his rise in the light heavyweight division.

For more on the numbers behind the record-setting event, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC on ESPN 40.

UFC on ESPN 40 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Jamahal Hill nets $6k for main event

UFC on ESPN 40 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 40 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $140,000.

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 40 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN 40 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Jamahal Hill[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Thiago Santos[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Geoff Neal[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Zac Pauga[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Juliana Miller[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Brogan Walker[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Serghei Spivac[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Augusto Sakai[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Terrance McKinney[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Erick Gonzalez[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Michal Oleksiejczuk[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Sam Alvey[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Bryan Battle[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Takashi Sato[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Cory McKenna[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Miranda Granger[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Mayra Bueno Silva[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Stephanie Egger[/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 $42,000 while title challengers get $40,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-40 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2022 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $5,393,000
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $11,560,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 40.

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UFC on ESPN 40 predictions: Santos or Hill? And who will be next ‘TUF’ winners?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the UFC on ESPN 40 main card, which includes two “Ultimate Fighter” finals.

Santos
vs.
Hill		 Luque
vs.
Neal		 Pauga
vs.
Usman		 Miller
vs.
Walker		 Sakai
vs.
Spivac		 Cachoeira
vs.
Lipski
MMA Junkie readers’
consensus picks
127-74		 hill2022
Hill
(77%)		 luque2022
Luque
(86%)		 pauga2022
Pauga
(56%)		 walker2022
Walker
(57%)		 spivac2022
Spivac
(78%)		 lipski2022
Lipski
(73%)
Ken Hathaway
@kenshathaway
136-70
trophy copy 2018 Champion		 hill2022
Hill		 luque2022
Luque		 pauga2022
Pauga		 miller2022
Miller		 spivac2022
Spivac		 cachoeira2022
Cachoeira
Mike Bohn
@MikeBohn
132-74
trophy copy 2014 Champion		 hill2022
Hill		 luque2022
Luque		 pauga2022
Pauga		 miller2022
Miller		 spivac2022
Spivac		 lipski2022
Lipski
Abbey Subhan
@kammakaze
132-74		 hill2022
Hill		 luque2022
Luque		 usman2022
Usman		 walker2022
Walker		 spivac2022
Spivac		 lipski2022
Lipski
Matthew Wells
@MrMWells
128-78		 hill2022
Hill		 neal2022
Neal		 usman2022
Usman		 miller2022
Miller		 spivac2022
Spivac		 lipski2022
Lipski
Simon Samano
@SJSamano
127-79		 hill2022
Hill		 neal2022
Neal		 pauga2022
Pauga		 walker2022
Walker		 sakai2022
Sakai		 lipski2022
Lipski
Matt Erickson
@MMAjunkieMatt
126-80		 santos2022
Santos		 luque2022
Luque		 usman2022
Usman		 miller2022
Miller		 spivac2022
Spivac		 lipski2022
Lipski
Farah Hannoun
@Farah_Hannoun
125-81		 hill2022
Hill		 luque2022
Luque		 pauga2022
Pauga		 walker2022
Walker		 spivac2022
Spivac		 lipski2022
Lipski
Nolan King
@mma_kings
123-83		 santos2022
Santos		 luque2022
Luque		 pauga2022
Pauga		 miller2022
Miller		 sakai2022
Sakai		 lipski2022
Lipski
Brian Garcia
@thegoze
121-85
trophy copy 2017 Champion		 hill2022
Hill		 luque2022
Luque		 pauga2022
Pauga		 walker2022
Walker		 spivac2022
Spivac		 cachoeira2022
Cachoeira
George Garcia
@MMAjunkieGeorge
114-92		 hill2022
Hill		 luque2022
Luque		 usman2022
Usman		 walker2022
Walker		 sakai2022
Sakai		 cachoeira2022
Cachoeira
Danny Segura
@dannyseguratv
101-105		 hill2022
Hill		 luque2022
Luque		 pauga2022
Pauga		 walker2022
Walker		 sakai2022
Sakai		 lipski2022
Lipski

The UFC is back in its Las Vegas home base this week with a key light heavyweight bout, plus a pair of finals for Season 30 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

UFC on ESPN 40 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, former light heavyweight title challenger [autotag]Thiago Santos[/autotag] (22-10 MMA, 14-9 UFC) takes on [autotag]Jamahal Hill[/autotag] (10-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC). Hill is a big -340 favorite at Tipico Sportsbook; the comeback on Santos is +250. Our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers largely are taking Hill with a big 9-2 picks lead.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] (21-8-1 MMA, 14-4 UFC) takes on [autotag]Geoff Neal[/autotag] (14-4 MMA, 6-2 UFC) at welterweight. Luque is a 2-1 favorite at the betting window and like Hill has a 9-2 lead from our pickers.

In the heavyweight final of Season 30 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” [autotag]Zac Pauga[/autotag] (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) meets [autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag] (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC), the brother of UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. Pauga is the biggest favorite on the main card at -290, but he has just a 7-4 lead in the picks.

In the “TUF 30” women’s flyweight final, it’s a close fight at the sportsbook between [autotag]Juliana Miller[/autotag] (2-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) and [autotag]Brogan Walker[/autotag] (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC). Miller is a slight favorite at -125, but Walker has a 6-5 picks edge.

[autotag]Augusto Sakai[/autotag] (15-4-1 MMA, 4-3 UFC) takes on -280 favorite [autotag]Serghei Spivac[/autotag] (14-3 MMA, 5-3 UFC) at heavyweight. But despite the big odds in Spivac’s favor, he has just a 7-4 picks lead.

And to open the main card, [autotag]Priscila Cachoeira[/autotag] (11-4 MMA, 3-4 UFC) meets [autotag]Ariane Lipski[/autotag] (14-7 MMA, 3-4 UFC) in a women’s flyweight bout. Lipski nearly is a 2-1 favorite and has an 8-3 lead from our staff members.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Hill (77 percent), Luque (86 percent), Pauga (56 percent), Walker (57 percent), Spivac (78 percent) and Lipski (73 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 40.

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Zac Pauga expected to face Mohammed Usman in ‘TUF’ final: ‘He knows I’m better than him’

Zac Pauga and Mohammed Usman had history before joining the UFC’s Season 30 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Zac Pauga[/autotag] and [autotag]Mohammed Usman[/autotag] had history before joining Season 30 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”

The pair will battle for the “TUF 30” heavyweight crown on Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 40 main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

Pauga (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) says he and Usman (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) trained together prior to the show, so he wasn’t surprised to see him make the final. However, Pauga is confident that he’ll get the better of him when they fight.

“I know Mohammed really well, actually,” Pauga told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s UFC on ESPN 40 media day. “We trained together for two years before the show and we’re on the same team on the show. He’s super explosive and he’s super strong, and so at heavyweight, he has what every heavyweight has. He can put your lights out at any second.

“I knew this is what the finals were going to be. Day 1, when we both got accepted to the show, I knew this is what it was going to be unless they made us fight each other on the show. And the knowledge favors me, in my opinion, because I know how fast he is, I know how strong he is, and that’s what he brings to the game. He knows I’m better than him, and there’s nothing he can do about that.”

All of Pauga’s fights prior to “TUF 30” were at light heavyweight, so he doesn’t see heavyweight in his foreseeable future. But if he wins the show, he plans on taking out specific heavyweights before making the move back down.

“There’s a lot of heavyweights that were signed during COVID that I’d really like to beat up and I don’t think are very good,” Pauga said. “But when I say that I want to be the UFC champion, I mean the light heavyweight champion.

“I’ll tell you their names right now: Parker Porter, Jake Collier. They got lucky that they had the fights when COVID was going and they just needed anyone who could show up and fight. And after I beat Mohammed, I would love to come in and beat those guys, too.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 40.

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LFA 98 results: Josh Fremd earns middleweight title shot with massive knockout

Josh Fremd punched his ticket to an LFA middleweight title fight with a highlight-reel knockout in the main event of LFA 98 on Friday.

[autotag]Josh Fremd[/autotag] is the first man to advance to the finals of the LFA middleweight tournament.

Fremd (7-1) scored a brutal first-round knockout of [autotag]Bruno Oliveira[/autotag] (7-3) in Friday’s LFA 98 headliner, solidifying his spot in the championship round of the four-man grand prix.

LFA 98 took place at Hartman Arena in Park City, Kan. The entire card streams on UFC Fight Pass.

Fremd wasted no time locking up Oliveira with a trip takedown and planting him on his back inside the first 30 seconds of the fight. The Brazilian stayed patient, and climbed back to his feet to break away into striking range.

The pair threw some blows back-and-forth, but then Fremd found his desired target. Fremd scored with a clean left hook that instantly rocked and dropped Oliveira. Fremd pounced with a few hammerfists on the ground, and the referee dove in to halt the action.

An ecstatic, who trains out of Factory X in Colorado, reveled in the biggest victory of his career.

“This is the biggest win of my career,” Fremd said in his post-fight interview with Alan Jouban. “You don’t know my striking, you don’t know my boxing. I’ve always had (power), I just haven’t shown it.”

Fremd now moves on to an opportunity to fight for the vacant LFA middleweight title later this year. He will fight the winner of Anthony Adams (8-2) and Gregory Rodrigues (7-3), who will meet in the other semifinal bout at LFA 100 on Feb. 19.

“Both of those guys that are in that fight,” Fremd said. “I look forward to fighting either one of them. No preference.”

Full LFA 98 results included:

  • Josh Fremd def. Bruno Oliveira via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:37
  • [autotag]Lucas Clay[/autotag] def. [autotag]J.J. Okanovich[/autotag] via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
  • [autotag]Richard Palencia[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jeimeson Saudino[/autotag] via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)
  • [autotag]Dakota Bush[/autotag] def. [autotag]Austin Clem[/autotag] via TKO (head kick, punches) – Round 1, 0:57
  • [autotag]Tabatha Ricci[/autotag] def. [autotag]Vanessa Grimes[/autotag] via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 1:07
  • [autotag]Joshua DaSilveira[/autotag] def. [autotag]Matt Paul[/autotag] via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:46
  • [autotag]Zac Pauga[/autotag] def. [autotag]Ashby Thomas[/autotag] via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 2:21