Roman Bogatov
Division: Lightweight
Result: Leonardo Santos def. Roman Bogatov via unanimous decision (29-26, 29-26, 29-26)
Record: (10-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
Grade: D
To say that [autotag]Roman Bogatov[/autotag]’s octagon debut was a rollercoaster ride would be an understatement.
The Russian started keenly, then showed a ton of heart as he somehow survived a second-round onslaught from Leonardo Santos. But then he lost his discipline in the final round as a trio of fouls led to a two-point deduction. Ultimately, the sanction didn’t affect the result, with all three judges scoring the fight two rounds to one in the Brazilian’s favor, regardless of the deductions.
Former M-1 Global lightweight champion Bogatov grinned and shook his head at Leonardo Santos’ attempt to hurt him to the body with kicks early on, and the Russian debutant seemed determined to disrupt the Brazilian’s rhythm throughout, via a combination of wild striking and constant forward pressure.
That pressure looked to be in vain midway through the second round when a flurry of right hands from Santos put Bogatov on the brink of defeat. But, with referee Marc Goddard watching very closely, Bogatov somehow survived the onslaught before eventually turning the tables on the exhausted Brazilian and finishing the round on top.
It gave Bogatov a glimmer of victory, but a thumping knee to the groin from the Russian in the opening seconds of Round 3 put the action on hold as Santos used almost all of his five-minute timeout to recover before the action resumed. When the fight restarted, Bogatov looked the fresher man and the debutant pushed the pace on Santos as he looked to score a come-from-behind victory, but a second low knee forced another injury timeout as the Russian was fortunate not to receive a point deduction.
Bogatov then went all out for the takedown on the restart, but he struggled to keep jiu-jitsu ace Santos on the deck as the Brazilian defended smartly, but then, inexplicably, the debutant threw a huge knee to the kneeling Brazilian’s head. It was a third clear foul, and forced a visibly frustrated Goddard to deduct two points from Bogatov for what he interpreted as an egregious foul.
It was a real mixed bag of a performance from the Russian, who suffered his first career defeat after losing his discipline in his desperation to grab a late finish. He’ll need to show better composure on his next appearance.
Next up: A big hitter makes a big first impression