MMA Junkie reports the attendance and bonuses for UFC Fight Night 29 which aired on Fox Sports 1 on Wednesday. Notably, Rousimar Palhares was left off the bonus list for his ankle lock submission of Mike Pierce due to his “unsportsmanlike conduct.”
Palhares held onto the submission despite Pierce’s repeated taps and the ref attempting to break the hold. It was not the first time that Palhares has done this as he was suspended 90 days by New Jersey for not releasing a heel hook quickly enough against Tomasz Drwal in 2010. Palhares’ submission was the only one on the card and by his omission it was obvious the UFC was sending a message.
Dong Hyun Kim won $50,000 for his surprising KO of Erick Silva and Raphael Assuncao and TJ Dillashaw won Fight of the Night earning $50,000 each.
UFC Fight Night 29 was a sellout according to the UFC as it drew 6,621 fans (via MMA Junkie). The fights took place at the Jose Correa Arena in Barueri, Sao Paulo, Brazil. It was noted that Fight Nights are conducted in smaller venues. UFC Fight Night 28 drew 5,126 fans.
Payout Perspective:
Palhares may be in some real trouble more than just missing a bonus for a submission. As for the other bonuses, there should be no complaints. It’s interesting that a sellout was announced although no gate was provided. Here is another time when the release of comps would have been interesting.
This went over schedule and I think it will negatively affect the live ratings for TUF. Is that 6 hours of straight UFC programming on Wednesday fight nights?
Palhares should be fired. The dude is too slow in the head to be fighting. His antics are getting old. After the Dan Miller fight I’m surprised his coaches didn’t enroll him with a psychiatrist.
As we talked about Pro Wrestling in an earlier article: … Palhares redefines the word “heel” in heelhook
I like Palhares. But they need to throw the book at his ass. This is the second time he has done this. He is making it so guys cant fight and support their family when he goes out of his way to hurt someone. He is a scumbag. His win bonus should be given to his opponent and the UFC should keep his OTN award which he didn’t get away and shouldn’t.
I would like to see a fighter sue his ass. Some people never are the same after getting their ACL tore. So he could effectively be ending someone’s competitive career. Not sure if Pierce is hurt or not. But if his ACL is tore. I hope he sues Palhares for everything he has! This is tantamount to punching someone after a fight. There has been boxers taken to jail for doing it. This should be treated no different.
This is why belcher beating palhares was a big deal. everyone thought what happened to pierce would happen to belcher. of and it looked more like a kneebar than a heelhook. i mean he went from heelhook and finished with the kneebar.