Momentum can be a fickle mistress in the Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight division—a reality to which Jamahal Hill has already been introduced.
Now two outings removed from a disastrous encounter with Paul Craig, “Sweet Dreams” will put a modest two-fight winning streak on the line against Thiago Santos in the UFC on ESPN 40 headliner this Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Hill last competed at UFC Fight Night 201, where he punched out Johnny Walker a little less than three minutes into their Feb. 19 pairing. Santos, meanwhile, has lost four of his past five bouts. He last appeared on March 12, when he dropped a unanimous decision to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC Fight Night 203.
As Hill and Santos inch ever closer to their upcoming battle at 205 pounds, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied them to this point:
38: Years of age for Santos, who was born on Jan. 7, 1984 in Rio de Janeiro.
15: Santos wins by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for 68% of his career total (22). His list of UFC victims: Jan Blachowicz, Jimi Manuwa, Eryk Anders, Anthony Smith, Jack Hermansson, Gerald Meerschaert, Jack Marshman, Nate Marquardt, Steve Bosse, Andy Enz and Ronny Markes. Santos owns one other win by submission (5%)—he put away Eneas Souza with a rear-naked choke under the Watch Out Combat Show flag in 2011—and six more by decision (27%).
14: Knockdowns landed by Santos as a member of the UFC roster, tying Mauricio Rua and Edson Barboza for most on the promotion’s active list. They rank ahead of Dustin Poirier (13) and Conor McGregor (13). Donald Cerrone set the all-time record with 20.
13: Consecutive calendar years in which Santos has fought at least once. In addition to his 0-1 mark in 2022, he went 1-0 in 2010, 5-0 in 2011, 2-1 in 2012, 0-1 in 2013, 1-1 in 2014, 3-0 in 2015, 1-2 in 2016, 3-0 in 2017, 4-1 in 2018, 1-1 in 2019, 0-1 in 2020 and 1-1 in 2021.
225: Combined victories between the 10 opponents—Ankalaev, Aleksandar Rakic, Glover Teixeira, Jon Jones, David Branch, Eric Spicely, Gegard Mousasi, Uriah Hall, Cezar Ferreira and Vicente Luque—who have defeated Santos. They carry a .768 cumulative winning percentage (225-65-3).
31: Years of age for Hill, who was born in Chicago on May 19, 1991.
6: Hill victories by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for 60% of his career total (10). His list of UFC victims: Walker, Jimmy Crute and Ovince St. Preux. Hill holds four other victories by decision (40%).
48: Seconds needed for Hill to bury Crute with punches in the first round of their Dec. 4, 2021 encounter at UFC on ESPN 31. It remains his fastest finish to date.
4: Organizations for which Hill has plied his mixed martial arts trade. He has gone 4-1 with one no contest in the UFC, 4-0 in KnockOut Promotions, 1-0 in Lights Out Championship and 1-0 in Dana White’s Contender Series.
.699: Cumulative winning percentage between the four opponents—Walker, Crute, St. Preux and Darko Stosic—Hill has beaten since he joined the UFC roster in 2020. They sport a combined record of 72-31.
More must-reads: