John Brannigan/Sherdog illustration
Lightweights
Leonardo Santos (17-3-1) vs. Roman Bogatov (10-0)It has been seven years since Santos won the second season of “The Ultimate Fighter Brazil,” and in a way, he has enjoyed the most successful career of the cast. Since Norman Parke took him to a draw in 2014, Santos has remained undefeated in the UFC with five straight wins, including quick knockouts of Kevin Lee and Steven Ray. While castmates like Thiago Santos and Santiago Ponzinibbio have become contenders, Santos is still languishing in the mid-card, mostly due to his inactivity; again, he has only had five fights since taking on Parke in March 2014. The UFC apparently has no faith in Santos staying active, since it keeps him on the promotional treadmill despite his impressive performances. This time, he takes on undefeated Russian newcomer. Bogatov is a perfectly fine fighter and an aggressive wrestler, which is at least an archetype that Santos has not fought in a while. However, Santos starts fights sharp and has enough knockout power that he can probably take advantage of that aggression before the newcomer ever gets out of the gates. Santos is 40, so there is always the chance that this is the fight where he looks old, but the call is for the Brazilian to score a first-round knockout before going back into hibernation.
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