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What's the story?
Light Heavyweight fighters Thiago Santos and Jimi Manuwa started off tonight's UFC 231 main card in an absolutely explosive manner with both fighters going at it in the early stages of the fight.
Santos, who is known for his hard-hitting style, proved once again why he is one of the most feared fighters in the world today when he knocked out Manuwa within the second round of their bout.
In case you didn't know...
Following the conclusion of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 2, Thiago Santos was initially signed to a UFC contract and made his promotional debut at UFC 163 against the winner of TUF: Brazil, Cezar Ferreira, in a losing effort.
However, Santos eventually bounced back from his debut loss and picked up wins over the likes of Anthony Smith, Kevin Holland, and very recently against Eryk Anders at UFC Fight Night 137 in Sao Paolo, Brazil.
Jimi Manuwa, on the other hand, came into this match off two losses against the likes of Volkan Oezdemir and Jan Blachowicz.
The heart of the matter
Both Manuwa and Santos started off the fight hitting each other with some solid shots. Manuwa countered a kick with a hard punch and in return, Santos rocked him with a counter left hook, sending Manuwa to the mat.
Manuwa drove his opponent to the fence and took a few more shots. Santos eventually got out and landed another hook on Manuwa that rocked him.
The two men trade punches with Manuwa landing a short punch in close range and then an elbow off the break, along with a solid jab. Santos responded with an elbow shot and a takedown.
The two then went back-and-forth for a while with Manuwa attempting a Peruvian necktie before holding on for the top position.
Round two began with the two men trading kicks, Santos connecting with a left hook in the clinch, wobbling Manuwa, who took another left elbow as Santos closed in for the kill. Both men traded solid shots but Manuwa was definitely wobbly and finally took a punch that sent him crashing down to the mat for the finish.
What's next?
With this win, Thiago Santos is now slowly and steadily climbing up the ranks and will look forward to challenging for the title at some point down the line.
