:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/50149137/008_Cristiane_Cyborg_Justino.0.0.jpg)
Last weekend at Bellator 158, Michael Page took on Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos in one of the most highly anticipated bouts of the weekend. It resulted in one of the most horrific injuries in MMA history when Page put a dent Cyborg's skull with a jumping knee. Literally.
After the bout, Santos was taken to a local hospital where it was determined that he had fractured his skull. Speaking with MMAFighting, Santos said that he was currently under observations and would undergo surgery in the United States. He also said that this wouldn't be the end of his MMA career, vowing to "return soon." To most fighters, "soon" would be sometime next year; but not to Santos. In an interview with TMZ, Santos' ex-wife Cris Cyborg (the better known Cyborg) says she spoke with Santos and that he said he would be ready to fight before the end of the year.
"I spoke with him yesterday. He no have any problems. He talks normal and he feels the pain a little bit but he's got medicine and they give him pills and he's okay. He's okay. Just you can see his head is not okay but he's so funny because he says, "aw I can fight in three months!" I said, "no man, you cannot fight in three months!"
It is heartening to see that Santos remains in good spirits after suffering such a devastating injury. And while Santos may actually want to return that soon, it is inconceivable he would be allowed to do so, especially considering the recovery awaiting him for his fractured skull.
"The first thing he has to do is surgery first and recover very well. You have to be careful. It's no simple injury. You know you have to put a plate there [gestures at forehead] and you have to wait until your bone covers the plate before you can start back training."
Bellator President Scott Coker has said that they will be covering all of Santos' medical bills and Bellator will be paying him his win bonus for the fight as well to ease the strain of Santos' impending time off. Justino also set up GoFundMe to help Santos cover his expenses during the time he will be unable to fight and it has already surpassed its goal of $20,000. Santos has a long road to recovery ahead of him but the help he is receiving from the MMA community looks to make it manageable.
"He'll be okay. In the beginning everybody was scared about it because you don't see this injury all the time. [Unintelligible] We said that God saved him and he's really good now."
You can view Justino's interview below.
5 MUST-READ STORIES
Estrogen. Jon Jones tested positive for estrogen blockers, has been temporarily suspended by the NAC.
Victim mentality. Jon Jones claims he's "a victim of my own ignorance" with regard to his failed tests.
You can't handle the truth. Ovince Saint Preux sends message to Jon Jones, tells him to "tell the world the truth."
The other 30%. Derrick Lewis estimates that 70% of UFC heavyweights are using PEDs.
No eye pokes. John McCarthy has been named referee for the Nate Diaz vs. Conor McGregor rematch.
EXTRA CREDIT READING
Good fights. Jack Slack of Fightland discusses Bellator 158 and the difference between squash matches and competitive bouts.
MEDIA STEW
The fight of the year last year. Watch this and revel in Robert Glenn Lawler.
Conor video blog.
Nice behind the scenes look at Bellator 158.
Luke is teaching you things. One of the best series in the sport.
Tommy on the sale.
LISTEN UP
Cheap Seats
TFATK
MMA Dude Bro
TWEETS
It would be easier to believe in him if his PR team was better. They haven't handled this situation well.
Don't write me off just yet, I know in my heart that I'm not a cheater. I trust in the system to help me prove it https://t.co/aE2vP9BlVp
— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) July 18, 2016
This is in NO WAY proof of anything. IIRC, the left picture was when JBJ was fat and out of shape. But it's a pretty wild comparison picture I thought y'all might want to see.
#AllNatural #NoSteroids pic.twitter.com/lJlOEfF2G5
— JustBleedMMA (@JustBleedMMA) July 18, 2016
This is a good fight.
@UriahHallMMA put some respeck on my name . Leave the PEDs at home your squad snitching . About to show you the real
— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) July 18, 2016
Don't pull out of this one https://t.co/xHWFxKZxq8
— U R I A H H A L L (@UriahHallMMA) July 18, 2016
Yeah...those rankings are definitely a bit off. And if Garbrandt is trying to get a title shot, fighting #11 ain't getting him there.
Fuck the rankings... I'm getting that #1 spot! https://t.co/hBQ3MKgBX4
— Cody Garbrandt (@Cody_Nolove) July 18, 2016
Now this is a fight that puts him in the conversation for a title shot.
@Cody_Nolove @BiggRigg_ Just a small bump in my road. #1 will be mine soon
— Aljamain Sterling (@FunkMaster_UFC) July 18, 2016
— Cody Garbrandt (@Cody_Nolove) July 18, 2016
Aljo expertly highlighting why fighters saying "this guy hasn't beaten anyone" about a guy they're fighting is next level dumb. Counter productive to their goals.
@Cody_Nolove Lol u KO a guy who literally beat no one. Hes good but u and I both know he fought a bunch of cans. Good win, but we'll see
— Aljamain Sterling (@FunkMaster_UFC) July 18, 2016
He is a fighter. A good one at that.
.@FunkMaster_UFC Bryan caraway broke you and he isn't even a fighter! #overrated
— Cody Garbrandt (@Cody_Nolove) July 18, 2016
This is gonna be a dope fight when it happens in the not too distant future.
@Cody_Nolove But you keep believing that lol. I'm hard to hit, & I kill guys on the ground. #HenryBriones? Lol yeaa I'm overrated. We'll see
— Aljamain Sterling (@FunkMaster_UFC) July 18, 2016
This lady fights this weekend. It's gonna be fun.
— MMA GIFS (@mma_gifs_) July 18, 2016
Dillashaw got his first tat and it's Ali inspired. A butterfly-bee.
FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Jim Miller (26-8-0) vs. Joe Lauzon (26-11-0); UFC on Fox 21, August 27.
Wilson Reis (20-6-0) vs. Hector Sandoval (12-2-0); UFC 201, July 30.
Dustin Poirier (20-4-0) vs. Michael Johnson (16-10-0); UFC Fight Night 94, September 17.
Derek Brunson (15-3-0) vs. Uriah Hall (12-6-0); UFC Fight Night 94, September 17.
Evan Dunham (17-6-0) vs. Abel Trujillo (15-6-0); UFC Fight Night 94, September 17.
Manny Gamburyan (15-9-0) vs. Alejandro Perez (17-6-0); UFC Fight Night 94, September 17.
Sam Sicilia (15-6-0) vs. Gabriel Benitez (18-5-0); UFC Fight Night 94, September 17.
Chas Skelly (15-2-0) vs. Maximo Blanco (12-7-1); UFC Fight Night 94, September 17.
Joey Gomez (6-1-0) vs. Jose Alberto Quinonez (4-2-0); UFC Fight Night 94, September 17.
TODAY IN MMA HISTORY
2008: In a long awaited contest, Fedor Emelianenko knocked down and then submitted former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia in the main event of Affliction: Banned. This event also saw Josh Barnett knock out Pedro Rizzo and Andrei Arlovski stop Ben Rothwell with punches.
Also on this day, Anderson Silva made his first foray into the light heavyweight division knocking out James Irvin in the main event of UFC Fight Night 14. The UFc put this card together on short notice to counter-program Affliction's MMA debut.
2009: Masakatsu Ueda defeated Eduardo Dantes by unanimous decision to retain his Shooto bantamweight championship at Shooto: Revolutionary Exchanges 1: Undefeated. This event also saw Shooto flyweight champion and number 1 ranked 125 lb. fighter in the world Shinichi Kojima lose a unanimous decision to Jussier da Silva in a non-title bout.
2014: Conor McGregor delivered possibly his most famous line, declaring "we're not here to take part, we're here to take over!" after knocking out Diego Brandao in the main event of UFC Fight Night 46.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Yesterday, the poll showed pretty clear support for the USADA era in the UFC. Today, we're going to talk about a different but tangentially related topic: fighter safety, specifically in the context of dangerous matchmaking.
Yesterday, in the tiny bubble that is the MMA media, there was a small debate about reckless matchmaking which is touched on in today's Extra Credit Reading. The most glaringly obvious offender in this regard was said to be Bellator and Scott Coker, who have faced scrutiny recently for their willingness to put on fights seemingly dangerous to fighter safety (Kimbo Slice vs Dada 5000, Matt Mitrione fighting five weeks after almost getting knocked out, Cyborg Santos fighting after taking 60+ unanswered punches only 2 months ago).
To sum it up, one side says that Bellator is behaving recklessly by making fights between novices and veterans, and having guys return to the cage on short turn arounds after being concussed. The other side says that this is sanctioned fist fighting, there is inherent danger in the sport, and the fighter safety side are being overprotective. There is also an implied argument on this side that there is a point at which the fighter safety camp would be correct (think Tito Ortiz vs. Dada 5000) but that Bellator hasn't made any truly egregious mismatches, or at least none substantially worse than can be found in any other fight promotion.
Where do y'all come down on this? I don't think anyone believes Santos vs. MVP was a dangerous mismatch - it wasn't - but the argument that fighting one of the most predatory offensive fighters alive while coming off of a recent beating is too dangerous to be allowed certainly has some merit to it. Has Bellator overstepped in its matchmaking or is this just a reaction to one of the more gruesome injuries we've ever seen in MMA? I'm interested to hear your takes.
And finally, the poll for today goes hand in hand with this issue and the headline story: should Cyborg Santos ever fight again? He's 38, has been brutally knocked out several times, and just suffered a genuine cracked skull (sorry Tito, that is what a cracked skull is). Coming back when you're almost 40 and off an injury like that, especially given Cyborg's brawling style, is a risky proposition but at the same time, who are we to tell a fighter when to retire?
Anyway, that's all for today M.Rmy. Have a good one.
If you find something you'd like to see in the Morning Report, just hit me up on Twitter @JedKMeshew and let me know about it. Also follow MMAFighting on Instagram and add us on Snapchat at MMA-Fighting because we post dope things and you should enjoy them.
Get the latest gear
