Santos halts free fall against Walker

Former UFC semi-completeweight title contender Thiago Santos won’t be worried about losing his No. 5 ranking.

This Saturday in the main event of UFC Fight Night 193 at the APEX in Las Vegas, Santos defeated fellow Brazilian Johnny Walker by unanimous decision.

The fight stayed on the feet for all five rounds and the only takedown attempt came from Santos, which Walker successfully defended.

Despite landing fewer punches in the fight, the judges gave identical 48-47 scorecards in favor of Santos, who took the win by unanimous decision.

With this win Santos ends his free fall of three consecutive losses, including a championship loss to Jon Jones, improving his record to 22-9.

For Walker, it’s a blow that denies him a chance to climb to the top of the division, stagnating at 18-6, with losses in three of his last four octagon appearances.

Walker was superior in punch volume, but Santos received the nod from the judges for his more effective punishment.

At the end of the five rounds, Walker landed 48 total punches and power punches to Santos’ 44 in both departments.