5 Defining Moments: Junior dos Santos

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With two straight victories inside the Octagon, Junior dos Santos will look to get back in title contention when he meets Derrick Lewis in the main event of UFC Fight Night 146. Lewis is coming off a failed title bid, so a win by “Cigano” could translate to a title shot.

The two heavyweights will collide March 9 at the Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas. With 32 wins by KO or TKO between them, expect a barn burner of a fight. Let these career-defining moments remind you of the power, technique, and heart of Dos Santos.

Spoiling Title Aspirations

When Dos Santos met Fabricio Werdum in his UFC debut, Werdum was on a two-fight winning streak after his massive victories over Brandon Vera and Gabriel Gonzaga. Werdum was in fact thought to be next in line to challenge for the title then held by Randy Couture. But then one solid uppercut from Dos Santos snapped Werdum’s winning run along with his title aspirations. The fact that he was defeated by a UFC newcomer didn’t help at all.

Record Setter

Dos Santos’ impressive UFC debut was only a sign of great things to come as he followed it up with eight consecutive victories. That long, undefeated run included wins over top-caliber opponents, such as Gonzaga, Roy Nelson and Mirko Filipovic. More importantly, the record-setting 9-0 run (which was the longest in UFC heavyweight history) included his triumph over Cain Velasquez for the heavyweight title.

Colossal Victory

There was a time when the heavyweight division was led by two behemoths in the persons of Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin. Back then, Carwin was on a rampage and lost only to Lesnar in a title unification bout. At UFC 131, Dos Santos and Carwin fought in a title eliminator. The American, who had stopped every opponent he faced before Lesnar, lost via unanimous decision to Dos Santos. Carwin never fought again after that encounter.

Proving His Championship Mettle

They say you aren’t truly a champion until you defend your belt. Well, that is what Dos Santos did and against a former champion at that. After snatching the title from Velasquez, he met Frank Mir at UFC 146. In that fight, Mir had no answer for the Brazilian’s attacks. Dos Santos completely outstruck his opponent and eventually finished him at 3:04 of round two.

Bringing the Power Back

Before squaring off with the younger Tai Tuivasa in the main event of UFC Fight Night 142, Dos Santos had not knocked out anyone since his stoppage of Mark Hunt in May 2013. But “Cigano” was poised to bring back lost thunder. In the first round, he absorbed a well-placed low kick that visibly affected his mobility. But after regrouping in between rounds, Dos Santos kept his composure and eventually landed some solid punches that ended the night early for Tuivasa.