Thiago Santos Issues Statement Following Third Consecutive Defeat

Thiago Santos had no excuses for his latest setback.

Santos suffered a unanimous decision defeat to Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 259 last night. Many were expecting the contest to be a barnburner and an explosive way to open up the stacked main card.

Instead, it was a drab three-rounder with very little action from both sides with Rakic doing just about enough to get the verdict of the three judges.

Santos — who was visibly disappointed at the result — is now on an unwanted three-fight losing streak and he could only blame himself for letting it go to the judges.

“No excuses, I left it up to the judges, it was my fault.”

Santos moved up to light heavyweight in 2018 and went on a three-fight winning streak to earn a shot at then champion Jon Jones in 2019. Despite being compromised for majority of the fight due to multiple injuries, Santos put up a good showing with many believing he did enough to win only for him to lose a close split decision.

He would then undergo double surgery and return against Glover Teixeira last year. Despite knocking his fellow Brazilian down twice, Santos would eventually get taken down and get submitted by the veteran.

And this latest setback doesn’t bode well for Santos and his hopes of becoming a champion — especially as he just turned 37. Hopefully, he will return stronger as he is still one of the most exciting fighters on the roster.

What did you make of the performance of Santos?