It took two tries to get it right, but Yair Rodriguez vs. Jeremy Stephens ended up exactly how people envisioned when the bout was first announced.
Friday night’s UFC on ESPN 6 co-feature bout in Boston was a re-run of last month’s bout in Mexico City which ended in just 15 seconds before it was declared a no-contest.
But the second time around, the duo threw down with reckless abandon, which led to a thrilling 15-minute war. Stephens rallied after a slow start, but Rodriguez’s strong start held the day as he won a unanimous decision on scores of 30-27 across the board.
For their efforts, Rodriguez and Stephens each earned an extra $50,000 for their “Fight of the Night” efforts. It was Rodriguez’s seventh career postfight bonus and the veteran Stephens’ 11th.
Additionally, a pair of “Performance of the Night” awards were handed out. Main eventer Dominick Reyes finished former middleweight champion Chris Weidman in the light heavyweight main event via TKO in 1:43, and Boston’s own featherweight Charles Rosa submitted Manny Bermudez in an undercard bout. They’ll take home $50,000 apiece as well. Reyes earned his third career postfight bonus and Rosa his fourth.
The UFC announced a crowd of 12,066 at TD Garden paying a gate of $1,124,765.
