UFC Fight Night 193: Thiago Santos vs. Johnny Walker Picks and Predictions

Thiago Santos and Johnny Walker face off in a light heavyweight bout for the main event at UFC Fight Night 193 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Santos is the 5th ranked fighter in the division while Walker is ranked 10th. 

Thiago “Marreta” Santos comes into this fight with a 21-9 record overall but he has lost three fights in a row. Santos last fight came in March of 2021 against Aleksander Rakic in March of 2021, even though he outstruck his opponent 49-36 but he still lost by unanimous decision. Santos' last win came back in February of 2019 against Jan Blachowicz, and it was early in the third round that he finished the fight by knockout. Santos is averaging 4.27 significant strikes per minute while absorbing 2.33 significant strikes. Santos for the most part likes to keep the fight on the feet, but he does average 0.7 takedowns every 15 minutes He is successful on 38 percent of his takedown attempts while stopping 66 percent of his opponents' takedowns. He is also averaging 0.1 submission attempts every 15 minutes. 

On the other side of this matchup is Johnny Walker who sits with an 18-5 record but he has lost two of his last three fights. Walker’s last fight came against Ryan Spann, in September of 2020, and it was midway through the first round that Walker finished the fight by knockout. The two previous fights by Walker were losses by unanimous decision. Walker is averaging 4.41 significant strikes per minute while absorbing 3.51 significant strikes. He also usually likes to keep the fight on the feet averaging 0.40 takedowns every 15 minutes but he is successful on 100 percent of his takedown attempts. Walker also stops 60 percent of his opponents' takedown attempts.