Thiago Santos earned one of the most important wins of his career.
On Saturday he defeated Johnny Walker in the UFC Fight Night 193 main event, and saved his UFC career.
After suffering three consecutive losses and undergoing a serious double knee reconstruction surgery, Santos needed to show he was still a player in the light heavyweight division.
He largely did that, outpointing Walker over the course of five rounds to take a unanimous decision by scores of 48-47, 48-47, and 48-47.
The 205-pound bout headlined UFC Fight Night 193, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
It was a methodical approach on both ends to start the fight. Santos and Walker worked to figure out the striking range with limited output, but early on it was Walker who did most of the advancing while Santos threw head kicks from the outside.
All class from Thiago Santos 🔨🇧🇷#UFCVegas38 pic.twitter.com/5Ke99LDbVZ
— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) October 3, 2021
Full UFC Fight Night 193 results:
Thiago Santos def. Johnny Walker via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47)
Kevin Holland vs. Kyle Daukaus ends in no contest (accidental clash of heads) – Round 1, 3:43
Niko Price def. Alex Oliveira via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Krzysztof Jotko def. Misha Cirkunov via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Alexander Hernandez def. Mike Breeden via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 1:20
Jared Gordon def. Joe Solecki via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Casey O’Neill def. Antonina Shevchenko via TKO (ground-and-pound) – Round 2, 4:47
Karol Rosa def. Bethe Correia via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
Jamie Mullarkey def. Devonte Smith via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 2:51
Douglas Silva de Andrade def. Gaetano Pirrello via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:04
Stephanie Egger def. Shanna Young via TKO (elbow) – Round 2, 2:22
Alejandro Perez def. Johnny Eduardo via submission (armbar) – Round 2, 4:13
