Thiago Santos Doesn’t Want ‘Tune-Up’ Fight Before Jon Jones Rematch

This past summer, Thiago Santos gave Jon Jones the closest fight he has had in a long time. Santos took Jones all five rounds with the light heavyweight title on the line. When it was all said and done, Jones was deemed the winner via split decision.

Now, Santos, who suffered several knee injuries during the fight, is in the midst of recovery from double knee surgery, seeking a rematch with “Bones” upon his return. Speaking to MMA Fighting recently, Santos provided an update on how things are going in regards to his road back to the Octagon.

“Man, the only thing I can’t do is kick, but I can box, I can work on my hands and do conditioning training as well,” Santos said. “I can even ride a bike. I’m not able to run yet. That’s it. I can do a bunch of things, actually.”

“I can do many things,” he added. “I just can’t run. But I can do a squat, work the upper part of my body, ride a bicycle. There are a few restrictions regarding weightlifting. I can’t lift much weight with my legs, but I can do many things already.”

Jones has not fought again since beating Santos in July and is teasing some big fight news coming right around the corner. Many believe it could be his long-awaited jump up to the heavyweight division. Others would like to see Jones squash his beef with Israel Adesanya in a superfight.

However, Santos still has a rematch with Jones on his radar, and once he’s fully healed up and ready to go, he doesn’t want a tune-up fight. He’s ready to march straight back into the cage against the best to ever do it.

“If it was only up to me, being 100 percent, I don’t need a tune-up fight,” Santos said. “I don’t need any of that. If I can train 100 percent, I’m sure I will get there ready to fight anyone.”

Do you want to see Santos run things back with Jones upon his return?