TUF 17 Finale Fighter Bonuses: Zingano, Tate, Browne and Pineda Earn an Extra $50,000

The Ultimate Fighting Championship handed out $50,000 bonuses following The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale on Saturday.  Cat Zingano, Miesha Tate, Travis Browne, and Daniel Pineda took home the performance-based incentives.

The Fight of the Night award went to the second female fight featured in the UFC between Cat Zingano and Miesha Tate.  Tate came out early landing strikes and securing takedowns.  The momentum changed late in the second round when Zingano gained top position on the ground.  All three judges had Tate winning the opening round and two of the three judges scored her winning the second round.  Zingano came out in the third and decided to take Tate down.  She battered Tate with strikes, and as Tate worked her way back to her feet, Zingano delivered two knees to Tate’s face followed by an elbow forcing the referee to stop the action.

The win earned Zingano a title shot against UFC women’s bantamweight titleholder Ronda Rousey, as well as a coaching slot opposite her on The Ultimate Fighter 18.

Knockout of the Night honors went to heavyweight Travis Browne, who made short work of one-time contender Gabriel Gonzaga.  From the moment the bell sounded signifying the start of the fight, Gonzaga tried to get the fight to the ground.  As he worked for a single-leg takedown against the cage, Browne delivered a series of devastating elbows that rendered Gonzaga unconscious.

The Submission of the Night came in the first fight on the card.  Daniel Pineda quickly closed the distance and took Justin Lawrence to the ground, isolated an arm and locked on a kimura that forced Lawrence to tap out.

The total bonus money awarded following The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale totaled $200,000.