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Saturday\u2019s UFC Vegas 124 wasn\u2019t the most memorable of UFC events, an Apex card low in star power, with several mismatches.<\/p>\n
On top of that, it was a card that had lost its main event after Sean Brady withdrew from his welterweight headliner with Gabriel Bonfim roughly a week out from the fight.<\/p>\n
In the end, the UFC tapped heavyweights Johnny Walker and Waldo Cortes-Acosta to step in on short notice. Heavyweights, on short notice? That could have been a recipe for disaster, but while the pair did slow by the third round, the fight was absolutely entertaining, and downright unhinged.<\/p>\n
The Dominican\u2019s Cortes-Acosta, on a two fight skid, seemingly threw every punch like he was trying to knock Walker\u2019s head into the stands of the newly renovated venue (and my how the extra bodies in the building, thanks to its upgraded capacity, helped). Or perhaps a better analogy: WCA was throwing heat, absolute fastballs, every chance he got. The former pitcher certainly has an arm on him.<\/p>\n
As for Walker, he fought both disciplined and wild at the same time, something you wouldn\u2019t think physically possible. His game plan was clearly to chop at Waldo\u2019s legs and stay out of range, and the leg kicks were absolutely crisp and effective. Yet at the same time, he mixed in numerous spinning backfists, elbows, a jump knee, and head kicks. It was one of the latter that set up the finish, as Walker caught Cortes-Acosta aside the head in the third, then followed up with some well-placed punches.<\/p>\n
Cue the worm dance in celebration (has anyone ever asked Walker if he grew up watching Scotty2Hottie in WWF\/E?).<\/p>\n
In any case, that wild main event earned Fight of the Night honors at UFC Vegas 124. Performance bonuses, meanwhile, went to Elijah Smith and Thomas Petersen. Smith put away veteran Davey Grant in a flash, while heavyweight Petersen had to overcome a series of fouls including a nasty illegal knee in the opening round of his fight with Gabriel Lorenco to put the Brazilian away in the third.<\/p>\n
All four bonuses winners pocket $100,000 for their efforts on Saturday.\u00a0Jose Souza, Andre Petroski, Austin Bashi, and Nina Milosevic take home $25,000 finish bonuses.<\/p>\n