UFC 278 bonuses: Leon Edwards, no duh – but $50,000 for Luke Rockhold, too, after complaints about bonus amounts

The UFC handed out four post-fight bonuses after Saturday’s card, including one to its new welterweight champion.

After UFC 278, four fighters picked up an extra $50,000 for their performances in Salt Lake City. Check out the winners below.

Performance of the Night: Victor Altamirano

Aug 20, 2022; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Victor Altamirano (blue gloves) celebrates defeating Daniel Da Silva (red gloves) during UFC 278 at Vivint Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

Victor Altamirano (11-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) found himself in a slugfest with Daniel da Silva (11-4 MMA, 0-3 UFC) right away in their curtain jerker, and Da Silva was getting the better of things, without question. But when Altamirano landed a knee up the middle, he hurt da Silva and the tides turned in a hurry. Once da Silva hit the canvas, Altamirano took over with ground-and-pound. He cut da Silva open with elbows, then eventually landed enough to put him away for the comeback win.

Performance of the Night: Leon Edwards

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – AUGUST 20: Leon Edwards of Jamaica celebrates after winning a welterweight title bout against Kamaru Usman of Nigeria during UFC 278 at Vivint Arena on August 20, 2022 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)

Leon Edwards (20-3 MMA, 12-2 UFC) snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, as the old sports cliche goes, when he knocked out Kamaru Usman (20-2 MMA, 15-1 UFC) to win the welterweight title late in the fifth round with a massive head kick. Usman was trying to tie Anderson Silva for the most consecutive wins in UFC history. He was considered by most to be the pound-for-pound best fighter in the sport. He was being discussed as perhaps the greatest fighter in MMA history. He even was talking ahead of the fight about moving up not one weight class, but two to light heavyweight to challenge for the title there. Usman was on his way to a decision win over Edwards, up 3-1 in the rounds with 56 seconds left when Edwards landed a kick that turned Usman’s lights out.

Fight of the Night: Paulo Costa vs. Luke Rockhold

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – AUGUST 20: Paulo Costa of Brazil (Bottom) fights Luke Rockhold of the United States (Top) in a middleweight bout during UFC 278 at Vivint Arena on August 20, 2022 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)

Luke Rockhold (16-6 MMA, 6-5 UFC) made a lot of news earlier in UFC 278 fight week with his criticism of UFC fighter pay, as well as criticism of the UFC’s bonus structure. So it’s ironic that his bloody loss to Paulo Costa (14-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) in the co-main event wound up winning him an extra $50,000. Costa swept the scorecards for a unanimous decision, but Rockhold was a regular threat with big punches and kicks. But by the end of the fight, both were exhausted and Rockhold was a bloody mess. He also announced he’s done with fighting after a career that included a Strikeforce middleweight title and UFC middleweight belt.