After weeks of anticipation, UFC 296 has finally concluded, and it has certainly lived up to its billing. The event featured nine fights, including two championship fights. There was also some outside-cage drama involving Sean Strickland and Dricus du Plessis. With the last event of the year 2023 coming to an end, let’s take a look at the results, records, and bonuses earned by the fighters.
The early prelims of UFC 296 featured a heavyweight clash between Martin Buday and Shamil Gaziev, where the latter won by KO/TKO in round two. Featherweight Andre Fili defeated Lucas Almeida by a round-one KO/TKO, and flyweight Tagir Ulanbekov won against Cody Duren by submission in the second round of their clash. The preliminary card had bantamweight Cody Garbrandt defeating Brian Kelleher by a round-one KO/TKO.
Shavkat Rakhmonov is the new boogeyman of the Welterweight division.
18 fights, 18 wins, 18 stoppages.
This man missed his sister’s wedding because he was in training camp for this fight.
That’s the level of focus and determination the rest of the division has to match. pic.twitter.com/yqNKLTAUFf
— MMA History Today (@MMAHistoryToday) December 17, 2023
The UFC 296 witnessed a remarkable fight in the preliminary card in the women’s bantamweight division, with Irene Aldana winning against Karol Rosa. Light heavyweight Alonzo Menifield won against Dustin Jacoby, and Ariane Lipski defeated Casey O’Neill in the women’s flyweight. In the main card, Shavkat Rakhmonov won against Stephen Thompson by submission to continue his unbeaten run.
Meanwhile, featherweight Josh Emmett won his clash against Bryce Mitchell by knocking Mitchell with a thumping punch. Lightweight Paddy Pimblett won against Tony Ferguson via unanimous decision. In the first championship fight for the flyweight title, Alexandre Pantoja successfully defended his title against Brandon Royval. In the final bout, Leon Edwards managed to defend his welterweight title against contender Colby Covington.
UFC 296 records: Leon Edwards matches Georges St-Pierre’s streak
In what was an emotional night for Leon Edwards, the English MMA star successfully fended off Colby Covington’s challenge for the welterweight title. Edwards won via unanimous decision and revealed how he turned his rage against Covington to fuel his victory. Following Edwards’ win, the 32-year-old matched ex-MMA star Georges St-Pierre’s record of a 12-fight unbeaten streak.
Leon Edwards aims to top Georges St-Pierre’s record of 9 welterweight title defenses 🏆 #UFC296
“I consider him the GOAT, so I want to surpass him, and I [definitely] have the skills to do that.” pic.twitter.com/E6aZYgb76h
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) December 17, 2023
Edwards also became the fighter with the third-longest streak among active fighters, with Islam Makhachev (12) and behind Jon Jones (19). On a less unfortunate note, Tony Ferguson has set a record that he wouldn’t be very proud of. Following his defeat to Paddy Pimblett, Ferguson is now on a seven-fight losing streak.
#UFC296 Las Vegas
Announced Attendance: 19,039
Announced Gate: $9.3M2023 #UFC PPVs: pic.twitter.com/yDgbq6Paz4
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) December 17, 2023
On the other hand, Pimblett is currently tied with Benoit Saint-Denis for the second-longest active win streak, with five each in the lightweight division. The pair are only behind Russian fighter Islam Makhachev’s 12-fight win streak. Lastly, UFC 296 became the event with the third-most attendance in 2023 and had the fifth-highest announced gate this year.
UFC 296: Ticket sales and bonuses
The UFC 296 held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas was attended by thousands of fans, including high-profile celebrities. According to UFC.com, 19,039 people were in attendance at the T-Mobile Arena. Moreover, a gross total gate revenue of $9.3 million was announced live. However, some fighters also earned big after the final event of 2023 last night.
After the event concluded, UFC president Dana White announced that his company had awarded four bonuses. One of them would be the ‘Fight of the Night’ award, and the remaining three would be ‘Performance of the Night’ bonuses. The ‘Fight of the Night’ deservingly went to Irene Aldana and Karol Rosa, with both fighters earning $50,000.
Josh emmet has knocked Out Bryce Mitchell in a scary manner. #UFC296pic.twitter.com/RYDOXlcv7U
— TwinVamos (@TwinVamos) December 17, 2023
Meanwhile, Josh Emmett won ‘Performance of the Night’ for his brutal punch on Bryce Mitchell that left the latter sprawling on the floor. Moreover, Ariane Lipski won the second ‘Performance of the Night’ bonus for her win over Casey O’Neill via submission. Lastly, Shamil Gaziev won the performance bonus for his victory over Martin Buday. All three winners took home $50,000 each.
