UFC Vegas 118 Post-Fight Presser Spotlights Bonfim’s Win, Plus $100K Bonus Winners

UFC Vegas 118 wrapped up at Meta APEX in Las Vegas on Saturday, June 6, and the official post-fight press conference became the next stop for the fighters and their results. Fans watching the live presser were also directed to the night’s bonus winners, the UFC’s customary way of turning one-off fight performances into lasting attention for fighters heading into their next camps.

In the main event, Gabriel Bonfim delivered on the high stakes of the matchup by taking a unanimous decision over former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad, a result that immediately reshapes the conversation in a division that is constantly sorting through contenders. According to a recap of the bout, Bonfim built momentum round by round, and the final decision reflected a clear edge over five rounds.

The presser’s bonus portion carried its own momentum story, led by a co-main event that delivered fireworks on its own terms. Brendan Allen vs. Edmen Shahbazyan was named Fight of the Night, with each fighter receiving $100,000. The award went to the middleweight standouts after a three-round engagement that the UFC bookend-style recognized as the card’s most complete exchange-based performance.

One level below Fight of the Night, the promotion also handed out Performance of the Night awards worth $100,000 each. Iwo Baraniewski earned one of those top prizes after a first-round TKO over Junior Tafa, extending his streak of finishes. Edgar Chairez received the other Performance bonus after submitting Bruno Silva in the first round, a victory described as the biggest of his UFC career to date in the same bonus report.

The bonus structure on the night also included Finish bonuses of $25,000 each for fighters who found a finish without landing the higher-tier Performance nod. ’s breakdown listed five finish recipients: Bryce Mitchell, Alessandro Costa, Chelsea Chandler, Joanderson Brito, and Ketlen Souza. The presser format matters here, because these are the moments where fighters often hear the UFC’s message amplified, that the promotion values stoppage wins as much as it values the “main event” headline effect.

With Bonfim emerging from the headline result, and with Allen, Baraniewski, and Chairez stacking major bonuses, UFC Vegas 118 produced a clear set of talking points heading into the next matchmaking cycle. The immediate “what happens next” question is straightforward: who gets the next step up in a division already busy with title-orbital contenders, and which of the bonus winners will be rewarded with opponents that match their momentum rather than hold them in place.