UFC 332 Sets Finish Record With 11 Knockouts and $400K in Bonuses
UFC 332 set a record for first-round finishes with 11 knockouts across 14 fights and $400,000 in bonus money handed out.
UFC 332 was not a night for the judges. Saturday's card at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City delivered 11 finishes in 14 fights, all of them knockouts, setting a UFC record for first-round stoppages on a single card.
Four fighters earned $100,000 Performance of the Night bonuses. Johnny Walker collected his for a devastating heavyweight debut, finishing Mick Parkin with a leaping knee in the first round. Damian Pinas knocked out Andrey Pulyaev in just 75 seconds with an uppercut that reportedly broke Pulyaev's jaw. Imanol Rodriguez, still undefeated, earned his bonus with a first-round TKO of Alden Coria. And Roman Kopylov upset 3-to-1 favorite Ateba Gautier with a first-round stoppage, handing Gautier his first UFC loss.
The carnage did not stop there. Six more fighters earned $25,000 Fight Night bonuses: Payton Talbott for his TKO of Deiveson Figueiredo, Alexander Hernandez for stopping Rafael dos Anjos in the second round, Marcus McGhee for a late first-round TKO of Anthony Romero, Anthony Wint for a 23-second knockout of Lucas Armand, Jacobe Smith for a first-round knockout of Bruce Whitehead, and Eric Nolan for a third-round TKO of Court McGee in McGee's retirement fight.
The UFC handed out $400,000 in total bonus money on the night. With the new champion Natalia Silva going the distance in the main event, she was one of only three fighters on the card who needed the judges. Roberto Saldic beat Khaos Williams and Ismail Naurdiev defeated Marvin Vettori, both by unanimous decision.
Eleven knockouts in 14 fights. Nine of them in the first round. I have been watching UFC cards since the Spike TV days and I cannot remember a night like this. Salt Lake City showed up with that altitude energy and the fighters matched it.
The guy I want to talk about is Johnny Walker. People wrote him off after the light heavyweight losses, and he comes back at heavyweight and puts Mick Parkin to sleep with a flying knee in his debut. That is the kind of reinvention that keeps a career alive. And Damian Pinas breaking a guy's jaw in 75 seconds deserves its own highlight reel. The UFC spent $400K on bonuses tonight and every dollar was earned.
