UFC Vegas 59 went down last night (Sat., Aug. 6, 2022) from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the main event of the evening, Jamahal Hill stopped Thiago Santos via strikes in the fourth round (highlights). In further action, Mohammed Usman knocked out Zac Pauga to become the latest The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) champion in the Heavyweight division (see it here).
Biggest Winner: Jamahal Hill
“Sweet Dreams” just keeps on rolling after he stopped Thiago Santos via strikes in round four of their headlining Light Heavyweight scrap. For Hill, that is his third straight win via knockout — to go along with three straight post-fight bonuses — slowly making him must-see T.V. as he continues his ascension up the ranks. Let’s not forget, Hill only made his UFC debut three years ago coming out of Contender Series, and he already has a bevy of impressive wins on his resume, and taking out a former title contender only adds to his bragging rights. Expect bigger things for Hill in his next fight, as the level of competition will only get tougher from here on out, though the 31-year old is more than up to the task.
Runner Up: Geoff Neal
Neal doesn’t get talked about all that much as a legit contender in the Welterweight division, but after he stopped long-time contender, Vicente Luque, via strikes in round three of their co-main event fight, “Handz of Steel” is going to bull rush his way into the spotlight, and closer to the Top 5. Neal already has some great wins on his resume, including taking out the likes of Belal Muhammed and Santiago Ponzinibbio, but defeating Luque is perhaps his biggest. Things are only looking up for the fearsome striker, who is out to take his respect by force as he proved with his blistering performance against Luque.
Biggest Loser: Thiago Santos
Things just keep getting worse for “Marreta,” who suffered his second straight loss after being stopped by Hill in round four. Overall, Santos is 1-5 in his last six fights, which should kick him out of the Top 10. Santos simply hasn’t been the same killer that took Jon Jones the distance in 2019 on two bum knees. Instead, he has looked like a fighter on the decline with no signs of turning it around because, let’s face it, he just can’t find the winner’s circle. At 38 years of age, the Brazilian bomber hasn’t done himself any favors with his current slump, and while Glover Teixeira has shown you can turn it around at any stage of your career, not everyone is going to have a Cinderella run like that in them. For Santos, it’s back to the lab to see what can be done to stop the bleeding of his woes and make his way back onto the winner’s podium before his time with UFC is cut short.
For complete UFC Vegas 59 results and coverage click here.