Thiago Santos Defends Referee Stoppage

Thiago Santos had a highlight reel knockout at UFC Fight Night 105, as he connected with a spinning heel kick to the head of Jack Marshmann.

Marshmann seemingly recovered after the kick landed, but the referee already stopped the fight, something Santos is pleased with.

“No, the referee stopped it at the right time,” Santos told MMA Junkie. “Maybe the referee didn’t see exactly what was going on right there. I was already hitting him with hard punches and elbows. It was perfectly at the right time.”

Santos did enter the fight riding a two fight losing streak, with those losses coming to Gegard Mousasi and Eric Spicely. Even with a two fight losing streak, Santos says he didn’t feel any pressure heading into his fight.

“I didn’t have any pressure on me coming into the fight,” Santos said. “It was visible. I was not rushing I was taking my time. It just has to do with putting things together. Camp, my mind is in the right place, the right coaches and the right strategy. … I know I have a lot of potential to show still.”

Santos was one of three fighters to get a KO/TKO win at UFC Fight Night 105, the other two were Derrick Lewis and Paul Felder.