Thiago Santos looks to snap losing skid against fellow Brazilian Johnny Walker in September

By Cole Shelton - May 12, 2021

A battle of Brazilians has been added to an upcoming Fight Night card as Thiago Santos will battle Johnny Walker.

Thiago Santos

According to a report from Combate, Santos and Walker have agreed to fight one another on September 25 at a location TBD.

Thiago Santos (21-9) is on a three-fight losing streak and coming off a lackluster loss to Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 259. Prior to that, he returned in November following double knee surgery and was submitted in the third round by Glover Teixeira. His losing streak started back at UFC 239 in July of 2019 as he dropped a close split decision to Jon Jones for the title.

Santos is currently ranked fourth in the light heavyweight division, and despite being on a losing streak remains dangerous. He holds notable wins over Jan Blachowicz, who he KO’d, Jimi Manuwa, Eryk Anders, Kevin Holland, Anthony Smith, and Jack Hermansson among others.

Thiago Santos

Image: @ufc on Instagram

Johnny Walker (18-5) returned to the win column back in September with a first-round TKO win over Ryan Spann. However, the result was controversial as many thought the elbows he used to secure the victory were to the back of the head. The victory snapped his two-fight losing skid where he dropped a decision to Nikita Krylov and a TKO loss to Corey Anderson. The Brazilian is ranked 10th in the division and this fight against Santos would be the biggest win of his career.

This is a crucial fight for both men as if Santos loses, he could be released from the promotion. Walker, meanwhile, is looking to finally break through into the top-five of light heavyweight. Regardless of who wins, this should be a phenomenal fight between two KO artists and fan favorites in September.

Who do you think wins, Thiago Santos or Johnny Walker? Let us know in the comment section, PENN Nation!

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM


Topics:

Johnny Walker Thiago Santos UFC