Dana White says he’s giving 25-year-old Andre Lima a $50K bonus after getting the bite that ended his UFC Vegas 89 fight tattooed onto his arm.
Dubbed the ‘Bite of the Night’ bonus, Andre Lima earned himself a tasty $25K before leaving the UFC Apex and headed straight to a tattoo parlor to get the teeth marks permanently imprinted onto his arm, earning himself another $25K from the boss.
UFC Vegas 89 prelim ended in ‘biting’ controversy
The UFC Vegas 89 prelim fight between Andre Lima and Igor Severino ended unceremoniously in the second round when Severino was disqualified after seeming to bite Lima in the clinch.
It wasn’t until the post-fight interview that viewers saw the extent of the bite, with an almost perfect circle of teeth marks being shown on Lima’s arm – albeit still raised in victory.
Despite how the fight ended, Lima had an impressive showing and now moves to 8-0 as a professional with five wins coming by way of KO, two via the judges’ scorecards, and now one via disqualification.
Andre Lima awarded $50K bonus after getting bite mark tattoo
In the immediate aftermath of the disqualification win, Lima revealed that Dana White had awarded him an additional $25,000 in bonus money due to the manner in which the fight ended.
Yet that’s not where the story of the already-infamous ‘bite bonus’ ended – with Lima leaving the UFC Apex and heading towards a tattoo parlor to get the marks permanently inked on his skin.
Posting footage of the tattoo on social media, Lima hilariously had the bite mark emblazoned with the words, “I got f***** bit bonus.”
If Lima thought that the tattoo might have gained him a few more fans, he certainly couldn’t have imagined it earning him another post-fight bonus with Dana White sharing: “I was going to give him 25K. Now I’m giving him 50K. This is AWESOME!”
“It was so insane I had to make it permanent! A debut to remember! Thanks boss @danawhite ! Ready for many more!” commented Lima.
Opponent Igor Severino reportedly cut by the UFC mid-event
For his part in the controversy, Igor Severino was reportedly cut from the organization even before the UFC 89 Vegas broadcast had concluded.
This, according to a text conversation with Kevin Iole shared online by the veteran reporter, in which Dana White said that the issue has also been raised with the Nevada State Athletic Commission:
“Those were two up-and-coming undefeated fighters. If you get frustrated and want out of the fight, there are plenty of ways to do it, but the worst thing u can do is bite your opponent. Now, you get cut and lose the biggest opportunity of your life.”
“Not to mention, he’s going to have real problems with the NSAC,” said White.