It is not surprising if Gleristone Santos has been out of the picture up until now.
But Santos, who has won nine straight fights, will be making his debut in mixed martial arts Bellator tonight in Texas. He is hoping that he can stay visible in the industry this time around.
Santos, who has a record of 27-4 MMA and 0-0 BMMA, will be going up against John Teixeira (18-1-2 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) as his promotional debut in this coming Bellator 143 event.
“Gladly, Bellator has opened its doors to me. I plan to gift the fans with many beautiful battles. I fight to the best of my ability, and I always bring something new – every time. I’m confident the fans will enjoy it. I’m here to stay,” Santos said.
Bellator 143 will be held in Hidalgo, Texas at State Farm Arena. Spike TV will be the one airing the main card after the prelims on MMAjunkie. The featherweight fight between Santos and Teixeira will be on the preliminary card.
Santos spent most of his time in the industry fighting in Brazil until he got a break from Titan FC and AXS TV. During the Titan FC 28 last May 2014, he won over the MMA UFC vet Alvin Robinson by TKO. This had put Santos’ name on the map. Last year, he got a split call from Robert Washington.
But after that win, where he thought he it was enough to get him a chance at a title shot, he encountered some problems with the promotion, enough for him to decide to move on to Bellator instead.
“Bellator liked my body of work and my most recent victories. They’re giving me the opportunity to show my true potential. I am very happy to be part of this organization. From what little time I spent in the United States, I could see that the promotion is growing in popularity. It’s also well known in Brazil. It competes very well with any other organization in the world,” he said.
When he had some time to spare, Santos had to get better from a broken arm he had during the first round of his victory over Washington. He admitted that even though his radius bone was already fractured, he still kept going that’s why he won the fight.
After the surgery, he had to take some time to recover and undergo some physical therapy. Even though he went through a lot, Santos revealed that he has been able to train 100 percent for the fight and thinks that he will perform well inside the octagon even though he had been out for quite some time.
“I had a chance to see him fight on ‘TUF: Brazil.’ I also watched some of his fights on the Brazilian circuit. I have his entire game figured out due to my ability to adapt to any opponent’s fighting style. He’s tough and he’s a complete fighter. He does a bit of everything, but that’s not enough to beat me. I think my potential, abilities and will power will be too much for him. I’ll be victorious again,” Santos added.