Two strikers chasing the same goal, but from different places in their careers. Santos has been to the mountaintop, nearly taking Jon Jones’ title in July of 2019 before losing a split decision. Since then, it’s been a rough road for the Brazilian, who is 1-3 in his last four. And while fan might be more forgiving of that stretch if Santos went out guns blazing like he did on the way to the top, that’s one thing. But the Santos of the last few fights has been tentative about pulling the trigger, despite his one-punch stopping power. He says that all changes this weekend.
MORE UFC FIGHT NIGHT: Fight By Fight Preview | Fighters On The Rise | Cory McKenna | Zac Pauga | Vicente Luque | Brogan Walker | Juliana Miller
“I think this fight is very important for me,” he said. “My last fights, I didn’t show that I deserve to go to a title shot again, so I need to prove this – first to myself, and then show to everyone that I am capable to go to the title shot again and become light heavyweight champion. So I’m gonna fight him different than my last fight. The key for this fight is to show my power, put pressure on him and fight like crazy. I miss these crazy fights. He’s very aggressive so it’s making me excited for this fight. I hope he comes like his last fights and comes to knock me out. I’m going to go to him and it’s gonna be fireworks.”
That’s a good sign for UFC fans, perhaps a bad sign for the once-beaten Hill, who is unafraid of getting into a firefight. That’s mainly worked for the Michigan product, who has ended six of his 10 pro wins by knockout, including Jimmy Crute and Johnny Walker in his last two bouts. But few get into a slugfest with Santos and come out unscathed, and that’s what the 38-year-old is hoping for.
