There was absolutely no doubt that Michelle Waterson and Angela Hill were taking top honors for Fight of the Night at UFC Vegas 10 on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
But Kevin Croom, that was a whole other story.
“What an incredible card tonight. The (Waterson vs. Hill) fight was incredible,” White said at the post-fight press conference.
“My phone was blowing up tonight like it was a pay-per-view. People were going crazy over the main event.”
Just as much as Waterson vs. Hill was a “no-brainer” to the UFC president, so were the Performance of the Night winners Kevin Croom and Ottman Azaitar.
Azaitar was undefeated coming into his co-main event bout with Khama Worthy, but even with that baseline, his 1:33 TKO stoppage was an impressive moment.
Finishing a fighter like Worthy that quickly certainly made Azaitar worthy of a $50,000 bonus.
Much more surprising was UFC newbie Kevin Croom. He stepped up at the last minute to face Roosevelt Roberts, who had six previous UFC bouts and a Dana White’s Contender Series fight to his credit.
Croom made the most of the moment, submitting Roberts in just 31 seconds to take home his $50,000 bonus and impress his boss.
“If you look at the books, not supposed to win. Four-to-one underdog. The biggest underdog on the card. One day’s notice. Different weight class. The list goes on and on of things that you could probably check off on why he was supposed to lose,” White said of Croom.
“But that’s the beautiful thing about this sport, you never know who’s gonna win or lose in this sport. That kid took a risk and the reward is massive for him.”
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Waterson and Hill went toe to toe for the full five rounds of their last-minute main event with Waterson taking a split decision victory over Hill.
Their respective performances, however, made them both bonus winners with the Fight of the Night honor bestowed upon them.
UFC Vegas 10 Performance Bonuses
- Fight of the Night: Waterson vs. Hill
- Performance of the Night: Kevin Croom
- Performance of the Night: Ottman Azaitar
Dana White: Conor McGregor Arrest, Jon Jones and UFC Fight Island
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Kevin Croom’s quick sub earns UFC Vegas 10 bonus