UFC Vegas 124 saw some thrilling encounters at the Meta Apex last night, with all fighters putting forth their best efforts. However, only a few were deemed worthy of winning a bonus. Unsurprisingly, the headliners of the event, Johnny Walker and Waldo Cortes Acosta, each left with $100K extra cash after their thrilling showdown. Alongside them, the promotion cut hefty bonus checks for some other fighters as well.

After the UFC’s original main event of Vegas 124 between Sean Brady and Gabriel Bonfim fizzled out because of Brady’s staph infection, Johnny Walker vs. Waldo Cortes Acosta became the new main event. The heavyweight headliner had promise written all over it, and the bout ended up delivering on all fronts.

In the main event, Walker ended up finishing the fight in the third round, becoming the first man to knock out Acosta. Because of their back-and-forth action, the promotion awarded the bout a Fight of the Night bonus. The bonus money was distributed equally between him and Acosta, each getting $100K. 

For those who may not know, the UFC increased its bonus money after it shifted from the ESPN era to the Paramount era in January. Under the previous broadcasting system, the promotion used to provide $50k for both Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night.   

But under Paramount, the UFC doubled the bonus to $100k for each performance bonus. Plus, it added $25,000 for every finish on a card. The reason for this increase appears to be the UFC’s $7.7 billion, seven-year deal with Paramount, which is multiple times more lucrative than it was under ESPN.

While a Performance bonus is awarded based on a fighter’s individual performance, a Fight of the Night bonus rewards both fighters for producing the best clash of the card. 

With that in mind, it’s not hard to understand why the UFC awarded the Vegas 124 main event the Fight of the Night bonus.  

Johnny Walker showed an impressive game plan, using his leg kicks to wreck Acosta’s lead leg. However, the Dominican also punished the Brazilian with cracking combinations. For two rounds, it seemed Walker would get flatlined any minute, but he managed to survive into the third round.

Walker found a solid head kick, backfist, and right hook combination that knocked his opponent out, scoring a spectacular comeback to win the fight.

Clearly, the fight deserved the Fight of the Night bonus because both fighters pushed themselves to the max to secure a finish.

For Walker, the bonus for the Waldo fight marked the seventh bonus of his career. The notable distinction is that his previous six bonuses were Performance bonuses under ESPN each getting him $50K.

On the other hand, Waldo Cortes Acosta earned his third bonus last night. His previous two bonuses came against Shamil Gaziev and Ante Delija in the same month of November 2025 under ESPN. 

The headliners aren’t alone in this case. The promotion also awarded other fighters for their striking performance at UFC Vegas 124. 

Other fighters who received bonuses at UFC Vegas 124 

Alongside Walker and Acosta, the UFC handed out two additional $100k bonuses following the event at Meta Apex.

Elijah Smith became one of the recipients of the marquee bonus after knocking out Davey Grant just 60 seconds into the first round of their UFC Vegas 124 main card bout. The bantamweight received a stunning $100k Performance of the Night bonus.

Then comes perhaps the most deserving $100k of the night. Thomas Petersen fought UFC newcomer Gabriel Lorenco on the prelims and pulled off an incredible comeback. Petersen survived an illegal knee, back-of-the-head shots, and an eye poke in the first round, and then went on to knock out Lorenco in the third and final round of their bout.

Because of this, the promotion recognized the heavyweight’s performance and his sheer guts, awarding him a Performance bonus of $100k.

Besides that, Nina Milosevic, Austin Bashi, Andre Petroski, and Jose Souza received $25,000 bonuses for their respective finishes on the UFC Vegas 124 card.

The purpose behind the UFC spending so much on bonuses is pretty simple: it wants fighters to be financially motivated to push a little harder, which creates more exhilarating bouts for the audience to watch. In return, the athletes also get extra income on top of their negotiated money.

Last night was one of those nights when the promotion was happy to distribute the bonuses, because most of the fights remained of high quality. With several other events lined up, especially UFC 334 on November 14, the UFC will likely hand out more bonuses.