CHICAGO - Miguel Torres, Takeya Mizugaki, Anthony Njokuani and Rani Yahya each earned $10,000 "fight night" bonuses for their performances at "WEC 40: Torres vs. Mizugaki."
WEC 40 took place Sunday night at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, and aired live on VERSUS. The bonus amounts were significantly higher than the $7,500 bonuses that were given out at WEC 39 in March.
MMAjunkie.com (
www.mmajunkie.com) confirmed the amounts and winners following the event.
Hometown hero Torres was expected by almost everyone to once again defend his WEC bantamweight title. While the champion made good on those expectations, challenger Mizugaki pushed Torres to the limit. Standing firm in the pocket, the two combatants went toe-to-toe for 25 minutes.
While Torres walked away with his belt still in place, the two each earned an additional check for the evening's "Fight of the Night" - no small feat considering the rousing bout Joseph Benavidez and Jeff Curran had contested just moments earlier.
Competing on the evening's preliminary card, Njokuani nearly ended his battle in with Bart Palaszewski in the opening frame. A stiff right hand dropped "Bartimus" in the first, and though he appeared fully recovered in the second, a series of heavy shots from Njokuani ended the bout just 27 seconds into the frame. With the win, Njokuani picked up his first win and the WEC and his first "Knockout of the Night" bonus check.
A winner of the "Submission of the Night" award by default, the stunning speed by which Yahya implemented his fight-ending rear-naked choke over former WEC champion Eddie Wineland would have earned consideration for the award on any night. The win was Yahya's second-straight submission in the WEC.
