Leonardo Santos just thankful to see end of foul-plagued fight with Roman Bogatov at UFC 251

ABU DHABI – Leonardo Santos beat Roman Bogatov with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi.

Take a look inside the fight with Santos, who endured two low blows, then an illegal knee to the head with a 2-point decision for Bogatov.

Result: Leonardo Santos def. Roman Bogatov via unanimous decision (29-26, 29-26, 29-26)
Updated records: Santos (18-3-1 MMA, 7-0-1 UFC), Bogatov (10-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
Key stat: Santos won the striking battle 116-81, including a barrage in the second round that nearly ended the fight.

Santos on the fight’s key moment

“I expected a great fight. He’s a warrior and I knew it would be a hard fight. … The fouls were weird because he did them three times. The last one, I saw him stand up and so I just blocked my ribs. Thanks to God to give me the strength to get to the end of the fight.”

Santos on the chance to be at “Fight Island”

“I feel great and blessed to have the chance to be a part of history. I love my life and enjoy fighting. I just want to say thank you to the UFC and Dana White for being brave and having a big organization to fight for my family, country and team. … I didn’t have enough time to do a perfect camp. So I just came here with my heart, bravery and experience. That’s what I did in the octagon. The most important thing is the win.”

Santos on what he wants next

“After my last fight I asked for someone in the top 10 or top five and no one answered me. So I don’t care. I’m healthy and happy. I’ll be ready.”

To hear more from Santos, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.