Anthony Smith picked up a much-needed win and an extra $50,000.
“Lionheart” submitted Devin Clark via triangle choke in the main event of UFC Vegas 15 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas, scoring the finish at the midway mark of round one to snag his first win of 2020. The 50-fight veteran avoided what would have been his third straight loss and fourth in five outings.
The submission earned Smith one of four Performance of the Night bonuses handed out on Saturday, with no bouts earning the Fight of the Night honor.
Joining Smith on the bonus list are Miguel Baeza, Sumudaerji, and Nate Maness.
With the original main event between Curtis Blaydes and Derrick Lewis canceled due to Blaydes testing positive for COVID-19, Smith and Clark were bumped to the headlining spot while Baeza’s bout with Takashi Sato became the new co-main event. Baeza made the most of the opportunity, beating Sato with a second-round arm-triangle choke to improve his UFC record to 3-0 and his overall pro record to 10-0.
Tibet’s Sumudaerji earned his first UFC performance bonus with a swift 44-second knockout of Malcolm Gordon on the preliminary portion of the card. That’s two straight wins now for Sumudaerji.
Nate Maness also earned his first UFC bonus while improving to 2-0 for the promotion. “Mayhem” had to come back from a rough first round to secure a rear-naked choke submission of veteran Luke Sanders in round two.
