Leonardo Santos Says Kevin Lee’s Interim Lightweight Title Shot is a Joke

Leonardo Santos doesn’t agree with Kevin Lee being given an interim lightweight title shot. Tonight (Oct. 7), Lee will take on Tony Ferguson inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The bout will be contested for the interim Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight title. It’ll be the main event of UFC 216. Speaking to […]

Leonardo Santos doesn’t agree with Kevin Lee being given an interim lightweight title shot. Tonight (Oct. 7), Lee will take on Tony Ferguson inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The bout will be contested for the interim Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight title. It’ll be the main event of UFC 216. Speaking to […]

Leonardo Santos on UFC Rankings: ‘I Don’t Understand The Criteria’

Leonardo Santos doesn’t quite grasp how the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) rankings work. Santos has gone 5-0-1 since entering the UFC and holds a TKO victory over Kevin Lee. Despite his success, Santos is nowhere to be seen in the lightweight rankings. Lee is now ranked 12th, but he’s been far more active since his […]

Leonardo Santos doesn’t quite grasp how the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) rankings work. Santos has gone 5-0-1 since entering the UFC and holds a TKO victory over Kevin Lee. Despite his success, Santos is nowhere to be seen in the lightweight rankings. Lee is now ranked 12th, but he’s been far more active since his […]

Evan Dunham vs. Leonardo Santos Moved To UFC 199

Although initially scheduled for UFC 198 in Curitiba, Brazil, the bout between Evan Dunham and Leonardo Santos has been moved to UFC 199.

Dunham reportedly suffered a “small injury,” which forced UFC to move the fight back by a short period of time,…

evan-dunham

Although initially scheduled for UFC 198 in Curitiba, Brazil, the bout between Evan Dunham and Leonardo Santos has been moved to UFC 199.

Dunham reportedly suffered a “small injury,” which forced UFC to move the fight back by a short period of time, thus the switch from UFC 198 to UFC 199.

Dunham-Santos now joins the card headlined by Luke Rockhold vs. Chris Weidman II for the UFC Middleweight Title and Dominick Cruz vs. Urijah Faber III for the UFC Bantamweight Title.

UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Weidman II is scheduled to take place at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

UFC Fight Night 51 Results: Andrei Arlovski KOs Bigfoot Silva


(Fight Pass shows only get the stock image treatment. / Photo via Getty)

You might not have noticed since all the other MMA sites were reporting about Floyd Mayweather Jr. tonight, but the UFC had an event on Fight Pass, UFC Fight Night 51.

Efrain Escudero made his (unsuccessful) return to the UFC against Leonardo Santos. Santos controlled the first round of the encounter. However, Escudero managed to drop Santos in the second with a right hand. It appeared to change the complexion of the fight as Santos became deflated and tired. In the third, Escudero was light on his feet and it looked like he’d pull away with the decision. This wasn’t meant to be. Santos found some source of inner strength (or Escudero stopped paying attention; who knows) and landed a huge takedown. From the takedown, he managed to take Escudero’s back and held the position until the round ended. This was enough to give Santos the unanimous decision victory.

Get the recaps for the other fights after the jump.


(Fight Pass shows only get the stock image treatment. / Photo via Getty)

UFC Fight Night 51 happened on Fight Pass tonight. You might not have noticed since all the other so-called “MMA” sites are too busy writing about Floyd Mayweather Jr. Ugh.

So was this event worth checking out? Kind of. When it becomes available for replay on Fight Pass, watch the main event. Despite that fight being the only one really worth watching on the main card, we recapped some other higher profile fights from the event.

Efrain Escudero made his (unsuccessful) return to the UFC against Leonardo Santos. Santos controlled the first round of the encounter. However, Escudero managed to drop Santos in the second with a right hand. It appeared to change the complexion of the fight as Santos became deflated and tired. In the third, Escudero was light on his feet and it looked like he’d pull away with the decision. This wasn’t meant to be. Santos found some source of inner strength (or Escudero stopped paying attention; who knows) and landed a huge takedown. From the takedown, he managed to take Escudero’s back and held the position until the round ended. This was enough to give Santos the unanimous decision victory.

In the co-main event, Gleison Tibau fought Piotr Hallman. Here’s a protip on this fight: Skip it. Tibau displayed his characteristic lack of conditioning. He torched his gas tank with a large flurry in the beginning. The rest of the fight was basically just non-stop clinching against the cage with zero activity. Hallman managed to cut Tibau with a knee to the head late in the third round. It didn’t matter though; Tibau got the decision because he spent more time pushing Hallman against the fence than Hallman spent pushing him against the fence. Even Jon Anik described this fight as “exhausting” to watch.

The main event: Andrei Arlovski took on Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in a rematch of their Strikeforce bout from 2010. This time, Arlovski was the one who got his hand raised. The fight didn’t last long. Bigfoot was slow and plodding, Arlovski was agile and had much faster hands. Eventually, Arlovski tagged Bigfoot with an uppercut that dropped him flat on his ass. Arlovski pounced on Bigfoot and landed a series of hammer fists that put Bigfoot out cold. We’re hesitant to say Arlovski is “back” but he could be back.

Here are the complete results:

Main Card

Andrei Arlovski def. Antonio Silva via KO (punches), 2:59 of round 1.
Gleison Tibau def. Piotr Hallman via unanimous decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Leonardo Santos def. Efrain Escudero unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
Santiago Ponzinibbio def. Wendell Oliveira via TKO (punches), 1:20 of round 1.
Iuri Alcântara def. Russell Doane via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
Jéssica Andrade def. Larissa Pacheco via submission (guillotine choke), 4:33 of round 1.

Preliminary Card

Godofredo Castro def. Dashon Johnson via submission (triangle armbar), 4:29 of round 1.
George Sullivan def. Igor Araújo via KO (punches), 2:31 of round 2.
Francisco Trinaldo def. Leandro Silva via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
Sean Spencer def. Paulo Thiago via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
Rani Yahya def. Johnny Bedford via submission (kimura), 2:04 of round 2.

UFC Fight Night 38 Results: Dan Henderson H-Bombs Shogun Rua


(Photo via Getty)

UFC Fight Night 38 is a rare Sunday event. Despite the odd timing, free MMA is always worth the watch. But page view-wise, covering lower-level Fight Night cards isn’t always worth the investment of time (ring girl galleries have a much higher rate of return). Nevertheless, we’ll be live blogging UFC Fight Night 38’s main card. It starts at 7:00 PM EST and airs on Fox Sports 1. Stay tuned, and refresh for updates!


(Photo via Getty)

UFC Fight Night 38 is a rare Sunday event. Despite the odd timing, free MMA is always worth the watch. But page view-wise, covering lower-level Fight Night cards isn’t always worth the investment of time (ring girl galleries have a much higher rate of return). Nevertheless, we’ll be live blogging UFC Fight Night 38′s main card. It starts at 7:00 PM EST and airs on Fox Sports 1. Stay tuned, and refresh for updates!

Rony Jason vs. Steven Siler

Round 1: The fight opens after they pan to a guy in the audience with a styrofoam Jason mask. Siler hits a few leg kicks. Jason attempts a counter right and misses big. He tries another and lands. Siler hits another leg kick, and Jason hits another counter right. Siler lands a front kick but misses a 1-2. Jason hits Siler with a massive right hook on the way in, which stumbles Siler. Jason lands a left hook which floors Siler. After a couple follow-up punches it’s over. Siler immediately rises to his feet and he’s pissed. Lots of people on twitter are annoyed too. Looks like Jason won’t be destroying any walls this time.

Rony Jason def. Steven Siler via KO, 1:17 of round 1.

Michel Prazeres vs. Mairbek Taisumov

Round 1: It’s a battle of wiki-less fighters! They touch gloves and immediately Taisumov backs up Prazeres with a front kick. They feel each other out for a minute. Taisumov lands a leg kick and Prazeres lands one of his own. Prazeres connects with a right hand, then a left. They clinch. Prazeres hits a knee to the body, pushes Taisumov against the cage. He attempts to escape but gets taken down. Prazeres gets mount. Taisumov attempts to scramble away, but only manages to down grade Prazeres to side control. Prazeres attempts a north-south choke but Taisumov escapes and the fight returns to the feet. The two fighters stall in over-under position on the cage. There are some week knees. Prazeres finally out-powers Taisumov and drags him to the mat. Prazeres mounts Taisumov and lands some punches. He’s setting up an arm bar but does it lazily, allowing Taisumov to escape back to guard. Prazeres keeps landing punches and some really nice elbows to the body; he’s far too powerful for Taisumov. Prazeres gets mount for an instant, but Taisumove sweeps him. Taisumov lands a kick to Prazeres as he’s still grounded and Mario Yamasaki deducts a point as the round ends. We score it 10-8 Prazeres because of the deduction.

Round 2: Prazeres lands a stiff right to Taismov which wobbles him. Prazeres attempts a guillotine but immediately slips off. He’s not on his back with Taisumov in his guard. A triangle attempt fails. He backs off and Yamasaki stands them up. Prazeres hits a right and and a knee. Taisumov counters with a spinning back kick. Taismov hits Prazeres in the nose with a stiff jab. Yamasaki takes a point away from Taisumov for grabbing the cage on a Prazeres takedown attempt. Prazeres lands a right head kick but it was weak. Taisumov rushes in and eats a right hook for his trouble. Both fighters trade ineffective strikes for the remainder of the round.

Round 3: Prazeres lands yet another right hand to start things off, then presses Taisumov against the cage. He briefly escapes, but winds up there again. Prazeres botches a takedown. Yamasaki warns Taisumov for grabbing the cage again. We thought he might get disqualified with the way Yamasaki has been behaving. Taisumov hits a nasty uppercut on Prazeres which stumbled him. Prazeres eats a big right hand after an atrocious, tired shot. His next takedown attempt is better though, he wrests Taisumov to the ground and gets mount for a split second. Taisumov regains guard and then rises to his feet. A minute left to go now, and miracles aren’t looking likely. Taisumov manages to take Prazeres’ back but he escapes. They reset, and the fight ends. Not surprisingly, Prazeres gets the unanimous decision win.

Michel Prazeres def. Mairbek Taisumov via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-35).

Fabio Maldonado vs. Gian Villante

Round 1: Expect this entire fight to be a brawl devoid of technique. Villante lands a leg kick to start the fight. Maldonado rushes in and gets taken down. Villante is in side control landing short elbows. He’s flailing around ineffectively on the bottom, and manages to get to his knees. Villante scrambles quicker though, and is on his back. Maldonado puts his side to the cage and gets to his feet, but Villante is still on him like glue. Villante landing lots of knees to the ass and thighs, and then hits a trip. He remains in side control for about 30 seconds. Maldonado gains half guard for a moment and loses it. Villante can’t seem to do much with his dominant side control save for some short elbows and punches. Maldonado gets back to half guard again and the rounds end after a handful of soft punches.

Round 2: Maldonado lands two jabs and a cross. Villante looks tired and has his hands low. Maldonado lands another two crisp jabs, but Villante lands one of his own. Villante rushes for a messy takedown and gets it. Maldonado gets to his feet quickly but gets his back taken. He escapes but eats an incredible, massive knee at the same time. “Crimson mask” doesn’t quite cover how bloody Maldonado’s face is right now. Villante breathing heavy now. Villante lands a hook, but Maldonado lands two counter hooks to the body. He then lands a jab to the head and two hooks to the head. Villante’s hands are at his waist now, but he lands a very good leg kick. Maldonado lands two body shots and clinches, which is probably a bad idea. Maldonado hits a jab-cross-uppercut combo that snaps Villante’s head back a mile. The round ends.

Round 3: Maldonado lands a triple jab. Villante shoots from across the cage and, predictably, misses. Maldonado is the fresher fighter and seems to be picking Villante apart now. Villante attempts another takedown from a mile away. He follows that up with a leg kick. He goes for a third awful takedown. Maldonado lands a left hook that stuns Villante, and then another. Villante is breathing very heavily and has his hands completely down. Maldonado is pouring on the body shots now, and Villante decides to get on his bicycle. Villante lands a big counter-right but Maldonado eats it and moves forward, landing a jab and a hook. Maldonado is pouring it on it. Villante manages to grab a hold of Maldonado with a body lock. His takedown fails. Maldonado lands three brutal uppercuts. Both fighters are exhausted now and are reaching on their punches. Villante attemps a millionth awful takedown. He’s stumbling around like a drunk at this point, eating massive shots to the face and not blocking any of them. He turtles but the fight ends before it can be stopped. Maldonado gets the nod from the judges.

Fabio Maldonado def. Gian Villante via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28).

Leonardo Santos vs. Norman Parke

Round 1: Santos lands a strong leg kick. Park attempts a high kick and misses. Santos lands a second leg kick which sends Parke’s leg flying back. A third leg kick lands. Santos switches it up and lands a kick to the body, then he hits an uppercut. Parke misses with another high kick. We get an accidental eye poke from Santos and the referee pauses the fight. The action resumes with some wild but ineffective exchanges. Santos lands a stiff uppercut, prompting Parke to clinch. They’re both against the fence, but Parke decides to separate. Parke misses with a leg kick. Santos returns to his leg kicks from earlier in the round. Parke hits a right hand and clinches. The ref separates the two after some inaction. After a few even exchanges, the fighters clinch against the cage again with just as much inactivity. We get another separation. Santos lands a right. Parke throws two more head kicks but Santos blocks each time. Parke clinches and their on the fence again. The round ends as Parke goes for a single leg takedown.

Round 2: A messy exchange leads into another clinch with not much happening. The two start firing punches, with Santos landing more than Parke, though Parke did land a good straight right. He grabs a body lock on Santos. More stalling. The referee takes a point from Parke for grabbing the shorts. That cuold be fight changing. Santos throws a head kick, which Parke blocks. They clinch but separate quickly. On the separation, Parke lands a big right hook. They get into a slugfest and both land big punches. Another clinch occurs. Parke lands a short elbow. Some more good dirty boxing, namely uppercuts, from Parke. The round ends with both fighters clinched and Parke controlling the action. Santos appears to be fading.

Round 3:

Both fighters going insane with strikes at the start of the round, but the awesomeness leads to another clinch with little action in terms of takedowns or advancing position. There’s some strikes from Parke–light knees and punches, but that’s about it. Parke landing more uppercuts from the clinch, but the referee separates them…only for them to go right back into the same position. Great. They get separated again, and a wild slugfest ensues. Santos initiates a clinch this time, only to be backed up against the fence. That’s where the round ends. And guess what? The fight ends in a majority draw!

Leonardo Santos vs. Norman Parke ends in majority Draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28).

Cezar Ferreira vs. C.B. Dolloway

Round 1: Ferreira hits with a left. Dolloway lands an overhand right which hurts Ferreira and backs him off. There’s a wild exchange and Dolloway lands a huge hook. Ferreira falls to the mat. Dolloway lands several more follow-up strikes and Ferreira is out cold. This one is over as soon as it started.

C.B. Dolloway def. Cezar Ferreira via TKO, 0:39 of round 1.

Mauricio Rua vs. Dan Henderson

Both fighters start of tentative. The “you will die” chants start. Henderson counters a leg kick with an overhand right but misses. Henderson throws a weak leg kick. Shogun lands a strong leg kick. Henderson answers with his own. Henderson tries another “H-bomb” but Shogun blocks it with ease. Henderson wrestles Shogun to the mat briefly but he rises to his feet in a scramble. Both fighters are still tentative. This isn’t shaping up to be anything like their last match, sadly. Hendo lunges for a right hook and misses big. Shogun grabs a thai clinch and lands a knee to the body. The fighters reset. Both throw big right hands and miss. Hendo clips Shogun with a right hook and he’s hurt. Hendo lets his guard down trying to finish, and Shogun lands a brutal counter. Hendo is floored and nearly done. Shogun gets mount and starts landing some punches. Hendo covers up and the round ends. Maybe this will be exciting after all.

Round 2:

The two square off and Shogun lands a big right. Hendo is dazed. Shogun clinches, letting Henderson recover. Henderson hits a couple of knees from the clinch. Stalling. Shogun manages to separate. Shogun reaches with a jab. A wild exchange leads to nothing. Shogun lands a body shot that sends Henderson reeling. Shogun attempts a terrible single leg. An uppercut from Shogun floors Henderson but he doesn’t capitalize. Instead he sits in Henderson’s guard for the next few minutes. Not much activity. Herb Dean finally stands them up. Henderson throws the world’s slowest right hand. The round is over.

Round 3: Henderson moves forwards and flails his arms. Shogun can’t land a counter. Shogun misses a leg kick and twirls around. Henderson shoots. Shogun sprawls and as he rises to his feet Henderson nails him with a picture-perfect H-bomb. Shogun crumples to the mat. Henderson lands some punches and this fight is over.

Here are the card’s complete results:

Main Card

Dan Henderson def. Shogun Rua via TKO (punches), 1:31 of round 3
C.B. Dolloway def. Cezar Ferreira via TKO (punches), 0:39 of round 1
Leonardo Santos vs. Norman Parke ends in majority Draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)
Fabio Maldonado def. Gian Villante via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Michel Prazeres def. Mairbek Taisumov via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-35)
Rony Jason def. Steven Siler via TKO (punches), 1:17 of round 1

Preliminary Card

Thiago Santos def. Ronny Markes via TKO (body kick and punches), 0:53 of round 1
Jussier Formiga def. Scott Jorgensen via submission (rear naked choke), 3:07 of round 1
Kenny Roberston def. Thiago Perpetuo via submission (rear naked choke), 1:45 of round 1
Hans Stringer def. Francimar Barroso via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Godofredo Castro def. Noad Lahat via KO (flying knee), 2:39 of round 1

UFC on FUEL Complete Video Highlights: Werdum Armbars Nogueira, Thiago Silva KO’s Feijao + More

If you’re one of the multitudes who doesn’t have FUEL in their cable package — or if you simply had no idea that there was a UFC event going on this weekend — you’ll want to check out this FOX Sports recap of UFC on FUEL 10: Nogueira vs. Werdum, in which Chael Sonnen, Brian Stann, and Jay Glazer take us through four of the fights on the main card, none of which made it out of the second round. Some notes…

– Even in the replay, it’s still not entirely clear where or how Big Nog tapped. But he did, and Anderson Silva has a sad.
– “Seeing Werdum do what Werdum does” is a hell of a tongue-twister, and Brian Stann almost pulls it off.
– We’re still doing that thing where we call the black guy “the explosive athlete”? Really?
– Note to self: When you’re fighting Thiago Silva, the worst thing to do is drop your hands and just stand there.
– It’s not shown in this video, but Rony Jason has the best Rony Jason tattoo on earth.

If you’re one of the multitudes who doesn’t have FUEL in their cable package — or if you simply had no idea that there was a UFC event going on this weekend — you’ll want to check out this FOX Sports recap of UFC on FUEL 10: Nogueira vs. Werdum, in which Chael Sonnen, Brian Stann, and Jay Glazer take us through four of the fights on the main card, none of which made it out of the second round. Some notes…

– Even in the replay, it’s still not entirely clear where or how Big Nog tapped. But he did, and Anderson Silva has a sad.
– “Seeing Werdum do what Werdum does” is a hell of a tongue-twister, and Brian Stann almost pulls it off.
– We’re still doing that thing where we call the black guy “the explosive athlete”? Really?
– Note to self: When you’re fighting Thiago Silva, the worst thing to do is drop your hands and just stand there.
– It’s not shown in this video, but Rony Jason has the best Rony Jason tattoo on earth.