UFC 121 Bonuses: Four Fighters Pocket $70K

The afterglow of a career-defining performance included a handsome payday for newly crowned UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez.

Velasquez earned a $70,000 “Knockout of the Night” bonus after he demolished Brock Lesnar in the UFC 121 headliner on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The 28-year-old American Kickboxing Academy ace stopped Lesnar on strikes 4:12 into round one before a raucous crowd of 14,856.

Meanwhile, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 1 winner Diego Sanchez and the world-ranked Paulo Thiago banked matching $70,000 “Fight of the Night” bonuses after their spirited three-round encounter ended in a unanimous decision for Sanchez. The Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts-based welterweight stopped a two-fight skid with the victory.

Finally, Daniel Roberts pocketed a $70,000 “Submission of the Night” bonus, as he coaxed a tapout from former King of the Cage champion Michael Guymon with an opening-round anaconda choke in their preliminary welterweight matchup. Guymon met his demise 73 seconds into round one.