Machida earned an event-high $200,000 for his controversial main event win over Rua, while “Shogun” received $155,000 for his efforts.

Other top earners included Joe Stevenson ($94,000), Cain Velasquez ($70,000), and Chael Sonnen ($54,000).

14,892 fans attended the card at the Staples Center, generating a $1,762,549 live gate.

The disclosed fighter salaries for UFC 104 were:

• Lyoto Machida ($200,000 – no win bonus) def. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua ($155,000)
• Cain Velasquez ($70,000 – includes $35,000 win bonus) def. Ben Rothwell ($50,000)
• Gleison Tibau ($38,000 – $19,000 win bonus) def. Josh Neer ($14,000)
• Joe Stevenson ($94,000 – $47,000 win bonus) def. Spencer Fisher ($26,000)
• Anthony Johnson ($27,000 – $15,000 win bonus) def. Yoshiyuki Yoshida ($15,000)*
• Ryan Bader ($30,000 – $15,000 win bonus) def. Eric Schafer ($13,000)
• Pat Barry ($14,000 – $7,000 win bonus) def. Antoni Hardonk ($16,000)
• Chael Sonnen ($54,000 – $27,000 win bonus) def. Yushin Okami ($18,000)
• Jorge Rivera ($36,000 – $18,000 win bonus) def. Rob Kimmons ($9,000)
• Kyle Kingsbury ($16,000 – $8,000 win bonus) def. Razak Al-Hassan ($3,000)
• Stefan Struve ($14,000 – $7,000 win bonus) def. Chase Gormley ($10,000)

Remember, the salaries listed above are simply those reported by the UFC to the athletic commission and do not represent a fighter’s actual earnings.

In addition to their salaries above, Barry earned an extra $120,000, while Hardonk and Stuve each received $60,000 in “fight night” bonuses.

For more UFC 104 coverage check out MMAFrenzy.com’s UFC 104 section.

* Figures reflect Johnson forfeiting $3,000 ( 20% of $15,000 show money) to Yoshida for failing to make weight.

Pictured: Lyoto Machida

In a decision that was met with boos from the live crowd and claims of robbery and calls for an immediate rematch from online fans, the judges awarded Machida the victory with 48-47 scores despite Rua winning the bout on nearly every observer’s scorecard.

Rua’s strategy relied on damaging leg and body kicks that left Machida battered after the five-round technical showdown, while Machida connected less frequently with precision strikes. Despite more frequent and damaging blows, the decision was given to the reigning champ, who was defending the title for the first time since winning the belt from Rashad Evans in May.

Machida remains undefeated, improving to 16-0 in the victory with his eight-straight wins inside the Octagon tied for second-best in the promotion’s history, while Rua falls to 18-4 in defeat.

In the UFC 104 co-headliner, Cain Velasquez cemented his status as a top heavyweight contender with a dominating win over Ben Rothwell. After blitzing the IFL veteran for the entirety of the opening round, Velasquez picked up where he left off in the second, taking Rothwell to the ground and quickly finishing him with punches.

Velasquez, now 8-0 on his career with five-straight UFC wins, remains in line for a future title show, while Rothwell falls to 30-7 and will return to the Octagon in search of his first UFC win to get him back on track.

In other main card action, Gleison Tibau used dominant takedowns to pick up a decision over Josh Neer, Joe Stevenson forced Spencer Fisher to tap to a barrage of elbows, and Antony Johnson earned a 41-second knockout of Yoshiyuki Yoshida.

On the preliminary card, The Ultimate Fighter 8 winner Ryan Bader earned a unanimous decision over Eric Schafer, Pat Barry kicked off the Spike TV card with an impressive second-round TKO of Antoni Hardonk, Chael Sonnen dominated Yushin Okami en route to a unanimous decision win, and Jorge Rivera, Kyle Kingsbury, and Stefan Struve also earned wins.

The official results for UFC 104 were:

• Lyoto Machida (c) def. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47)
  UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
• Cain Velasquez def. Ben Rothwell via TKO (strikes) — Round 2, 0:58
• Gleison Tibau def. Josh Neer via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Joe Stevenson def. Spencer Fisher via submission (strikes) — Round 2, 4:03
• Anthony Johnson def. Yoshiyuki Yoshida via TKO (strikes) — Round 1, 0:41
• Ryan Bader def. Eric Schafer via unanimous decison (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Patrick Barry def. Antoni Hardonk via TKO (strikes) — Round 2, 2:30
• Chael Sonnen def. Yushin Okami via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Jorge Rivera def. Rob Kimmons via TKO (strikes) — Round 3, 1:53
• Kyle Kingsbury def. Razak Al-Hassan via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
• Stefan Struve def. Chase Gormley via submission (triangle choke) — Round 1, 4:04

Click here for more UFC 104 coverage

Pictured: Lyoto Machida

Light heavyweight champ Lyoto Machida (202.5) and challenger Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (204.5) successfully made weight for the UFC 104 main event, as did co-headliners Cain Velasquez (238) and Ben Rothwell (265).

Welterweight knockout artist Anthony Johnson will likely be moving to middleweight for his next bout after weighing in 6 pounds over the division’s 170 pound limit. Johnson will forfeit 20 percent of his purse to opponent Yoshiyuki Yoshida, who weighed in at 170 pounds, but the fight will go on as scheduled.

Lightweights Josh Neer and Gleison Tibau both narrowly missed the division’s 155 pound limit for their matchup, but have agreed that neither will need to shed extra weight, instead meeting at a 157 pound catchweight.

Stop back to MMAFrenzy.com tomorrow night beginning at 7pm ET for live coverage of UFC 104.

The official weigh-in results were:

MAIN CARD

• 205: Lyoto Machida (c) (202.5) vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (204.5)
  UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
• 265: Cain Velasquez (238) vs. Ben Rothwell (265)
• 155: Joe Stevenson (155.5) vs. Spencer Fisher (155)
• 170: Anthony Johnson (176) vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida (170)*
• 155: Josh Neer (156.5) vs. Gleison Tibau (157)**

PRELIMINARY CARD

• 205: Ryan Bader (205) vs. Eric Schafer (205.5)
• 265: Antoni Hardonk (249.5) vs. Patrick Barry (237)
• 185: Yushin Okami (185) vs. Chael Sonnen (185)
• 185: Jorge Rivera (185) vs. Rob Kimmons (185)
• 205: Kyle Kingsbury (205.5) vs. Razak Al-Hassan (204.5)
• 265: Stefan Struve (243.5) vs. Chase Gormley (262)

* Johnson, who weighed in 6 pounds over the welterweight limit, will forfeit 20% of his purse to Yoshida for failing to make weight, but the fight will go on as scheduled.
** Neer and Tibau have agreed to fight at a catchweight of 157-pounds after both weighed in over the lightweight limit.

Pictured: Lyoto Machida

Notable additions to the card include middleweight contender Yushin Okami,  a winner of three-straight and 7 of his 8 UFC fights, who meets Chael Sonnen on the untelevised UFC 104 preliminary card, as well as former lightweight champion Sean Sherk, whose fight against Gleison Tibau has been shifted from UFC 103 to the UFC 104 main card.

The official fight card for UFC 104 now features:

MAIN CARD

• Lyoto Machida (c) vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
  UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
• Cain Velasquez vs. Ben Rothwell
• Sean Sherk vs. Gleison Tibau
• Joe Stevenson vs. Spencer Fisher
• Anthony Johnson vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida

PRELIMINARY CARD

• Antoni Hardonk vs. Pat Barry
• Yushin Okami vs. Chael Sonnen
• Jorge Rivera vs. Rob Kimmons
• Ryan Bader vs. Eric Schafer
• Razak Al-Hassan vs. Kyle Kingsbury
• Chase Gormley vs. Stefan Struve

For more UFC 104 coverage check out MMAFrenzy.com’s UFC 104 section.

Pictured: Sean Sherk

Sonnen (22-10-1), who had been scheduled to fight Wilson Gouveia at UFC 102 in August, was tapped to replace an injured Okami in May and take on Dan Miller at UFC 98, with Sonnen winning the fight by unanimous decision. An import from the WEC, Sonnen would have been the promotion’s last middleweight champion had title-holder Paulo Filho not failed to make weight for their late-2008 matchup, which Sonnen won by unanimous decision. After suffering a first-round submission defeat to Demian Maia in his UFC return, Sonnen bounced back with the victory over the former IFL champ Miller.

Okami (23-4) remains one of the top contenders in the 185-pound division, losing just once to former champ Rich Franklin in 8 UFC bouts, but has yet to receive a title shot due to his unimpressive wins caused his inability to finish of his opponents and streaks of inactivity. “Thunder” has fought just 3 times over the last 2 years since his June 2006 loss to Franklin, defeating Jason MacDonald by unanimous decision in October 2007 and Evan Tanner via second-round knockout last March. His most-recent win, a unanimous decision defeat of Dean Lister in December, was regarded as one of the most boring fights of the year and, despite the credentials of both Okami and Lister, failed to make the UFC 92 pay-per-view broadcast.

UFC 104 is headlined by a light heavyweight championship matchup featuring current title-holder Lyoto Machida against challenger Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. Heavyweight contenders Shane Carwin and Cain Velasquez are set to square off in the PPV card’s co-main event, while Antoni Hardonk vs. Pat Berry, Anthony Johnson vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida, and Ryan Bader vs. Eric Schafer are also rumored for the card.

For the latest UFC 104 rumors check out the MMAFrenzy.com UFC rumors section.

“I’d torn my ligament around the end of April,” Okami told UFC.com. “I really wanted to fight (against Miller), but the doctor had stopped me. He told me I would recover by June if I sit still. Currently I’m focused on upper-body training, and by July I will be back to my usual regimen. I want to get back into the Octagon, if possible, to fight in September.”

Despite the injury, Okami remains the top 185-pound contender and is expected to be the next challenger for middleweight champ Anderson Silva (24-4) should he win his September return against an opponent to-be-named. Silva next fights in August in a light heavyweight contest against Forrest Griffin, but is expected to return to 185-pounds for a title defense later this year or in early-2010.

Okami defeated Silva via disqualification in their first meeting in January 2006 due to an illegal kick. Okami has gone 9-2 following the win, losing only to Jake Shields and Rich Franklin while picking up notable wins over Mike Swick, Jason MacDonald, and Evan Tanner. “Thunder” was last in action in December at UFC 92, defeating Dean Lister via unanimous decision.

Meanwhile, Silva has won 10-straight fights, including a record 9-straight UFC wins, to cement his status as the world’s top middleweight and one of the best pound-for found fighters.

“The records say I won but I really lost the match. But I believe because of this fight I’ve grown stronger. The next time I fight him things will be different. I am confident of that,” Okami concluded.

[Pictured: Yushin Okami]

Ed Herman

Ed Herman has been selected to replace an injured Yushin Okami against Dan Miller at UFC 98 on May 23rd in Las Vegas.

The news, which comes via MMA Weekly, is a bit disappointing considering the UFC promised an “awesome replacement challenger”.

Herman (15-6) is just 4-4 in eight UFC bouts, dropping back-to-back fights Demian Maia and Alan Belcher before evening his record with a unanimous decision victory over David Loiseau at UFC 97 earlier this month.

Miller (11-1), a former IFL middleweight champion, is on the rise in the UFC’s 185-pound division with three-straight victories inside the octagon over Rob Kimmons, Matt Horwich, and Jake Rosholt.

For the latest UFC 98 news stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com.

Yushin Okami

The UFC announced on Thursday afternoon via Twitter that Yushin Okami has been forced out of his UFC 98 main card bout against Dan Miller after suffering a torn ligament.

According to the message, an “awesome replacement challenger” will soon be announced to square off with Miller on May 23rd in Las Vegas.

Earlier Thursday, Xavier Foupa-Pokham was tapped to replace James Irvin against Drew McFedries on the UFC 98 card.

Stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com for the latest UFC 98 news.

Dan Miller

Just one day after officially announcing UFC 98: Lesnar vs. Mir 2, the UFC today confirmed the majority of the event’s lineup, adding Matt Hughes vs. Matt Serra, Dan Miller vs. Yushin Okami, and Sean Sherk vs. Frankie Edgar to the UFC 98 main card.

James Irvin vs. Drew McFedries, Houston Alexander vs. Andre Gusmao, Patrick Barry vs. Tim Hague, Phillipe Nover vs. Kyle Bradley, Dave Kaplan vs. George Roop, and Yoshiyuki Yoshida vs. Brandon Wolff were all officially confirmed for the event’s preliminary card.

Though the Hughes-Serra and Sherk-Edgar bouts have been known for some time, the middleweight matchup featuring contenders Dan Miller and Yushin Okami had not been reported until this evening and the winner of the 185-pound matchup has a serious claim to a shot at Anderson Silva down the road.

Miller (11-1), the former IFL middleweight champ, has not been defeated since a 2006 loss to Mike Massenzio, the first and only of his 13 bout career. Undefeated in his last 10 bouts, Miller holds three-straight UFC victories over Rob Kimmons, Matt Horwich, and Jake Rosholt.

Okami (23-4) has lost just once in eight bouts inside the octagon, falling to former title-holder Rich Franklin in mid-2007 before winning three-straight bouts over Jason MacDonald, Evan Tanner, and Dean Lister.

UFC 98 takes place on May 23rd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and is headlined the a rematch between heavyweight title-holders Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir.

For the latest UFC 98 news check out the MMAFrenzy.com UFC 98 category.

Added to the pay-per-view televised main card are bouts featuring The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finalist CB Dollaway against Mike Massenzio and heavyweight contender Cheick Kongo against UFC newcomer Mustapha Al-Turk.

Matt Hamill vs. Reese Andy, Yushin Okami vs. Dean Lister, Ryo Chonan vs. Brad Blackburn, Antoni Hardonk vs. Mark Burch, and Dan Evensen vs. Pat Berry were all announced for the unaired preliminary card.

For more UFC rumors check out the MMAFrenzy.com MMA rumors section.