UFC Fight Night 43 bonuses: Marquardt, Oliveira, Villante, O'Connell nab $50,000

AUCKLAND, New Zealand – Nate Marquardt, Charles Oliveira, Gian Villante and Sean O’Connell each earned $50,000 bonuses for their performances at Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 43 event.

Villante and O’Connell earned the “Fight of the Night,” while Marquardt and Oliveira each won “Performance of the Night” honors.

UFC President Dana White announced the winners following the card.

UFC Fight Night 43 took place at Vector Arena in Auckland, New Zealand. The entire card streamed on UFC Fight Pass.

Marquardt (33-13-2 MMA, 11-6 UFC) was in hostile territory, fighting James Te Huna (16-8 MMA, 5-4 UFC) in front of his home New Zealand fans. But the emotion Te Huna had during a walkout led by a traditional Maori “Haka” ceremony quickly turned once the fight started. Marquardt blasted Te Huna on the feet, then took care of business on the ground, taking him out with a first-round armbar.

Oliveira (18-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) became the first fighter to ever stop Hatsu Hioki (27-8-2 MMA, 3-4 UFC), let alone submit the grappling ace. In a back-and-forth fight, he finally tapped him out with a guillotine choke.

And Villante (12-5 MMA, 2-2 UFC) and O’Connell (15-6 MMA, 0-2 UFC) got the night started off on another back-and-forth note, battling for 15 minutes before Villante took a split decision in the light heavyweight bout.

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 43, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.

(Pictured: Sean O’Connell)