TLDR
- Thiago Santos suffered knee injuries from oblique kicks during his 2019 UFC title fight with Jon Jones, requiring double knee surgery
- Santos opposes California State Athletic Commission director Andy Foster’s proposal to ban oblique kicks
- He believes oblique kicks can be defended and are no more dangerous than legal techniques like low kicks
- Santos wants officials to focus on truly illegal moves like eye pokes and shots to the back of the head
- At 42, Santos considers himself semi-retired but hasn’t officially announced retirement from fig hting
Sources: yardbarker.com | mmafighting.com
Thiago Santos knows exactly how much damage an oblique kick can do. The Brazilian fighter had to undergo surgery on both knees after his UFC title fight against Jon Jones in 2019. But even after that experience, Santos doesn’t think the technique should be banned.
Santos fought Jones at UFC 239 in July 2019 for the light heavyweight championship. Jones repeatedly hit Santos’ left knee with lateral kicks during the five-round fight. Santos’ right knee was already hurt before the fight even started.
The Brazilian lost by split decision but went the full 25 minutes despite the damage. After the fight, he needed surgery on both knees and spent more than a year recovering.
(1/2) Should MMA ban oblique kicks?
Thiago Santos, who had double knee surgery after Jon Jones used this attack on him, weighs in on the controversial technique.
“I think there are other more important things they should be focusing on. Like strikes that are actually illegal,… pic.twitter.com/C5rwAZdSpY
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) September 27, 2026
Santos Says Oblique Kicks Can Be Defended
California State Athletic Commission executive director Andy Foster recently suggested officials should look at banning lateral knee kicks. UFC CEO Dana White also said he supports the idea. But Santos disagrees with both of them.
“I personally don’t see the need to ban oblique kicks,” Santos told MMA Fighting in Portuguese. “I don’t see it as an illegal technique, a technique that’s that difficult to defend from.”
Santos compared oblique kicks to other legal techniques that can cause serious damage. He said a well-placed low kick from someone like Edson Barboza can hurt a fighter’s knee just as badly.
“The guy has the option to block it or move his leg out of the way,” Santos explained. “The guy can bend his knee, move his leg out of the way, move to the side. There are a few ways to avoid it.”
Santos came back to fight after his surgeries but lost four of his next five fights. He eventually left the UFC after his performance never quite matched what it was before the Jones fight.
Focus Should Be on Eye Pokes and Illegal Strikes
Santos thinks officials should worry about other problems instead. He wants commissions to focus on fouls that are already banned but don’t get punished hard enough.
“There are more important things they should be focusing on,” Santos said. “Like strikes that are actually illegal, like shots to the back of the head, eye pokes.”
He said commissions should change the rules to create more severe punishment for those fouls. Santos pointed to specific examples of fighters who were hurt by illegal strikes.
Santos mentioned current UFC star Alex Pereira and former heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall as fighters affected by illegal strikes. Aspinall suffered a serious eye injury from an eye poke.
“Those are the things that really need attention,” Santos said. “So fighters are more concerned about not committing those infractions. That’s what they should be focusing on, not these oblique kicks.”
Santos is now 42 years old and married to UFC fighter Yana Santos. He still trains and competes occasionally but doesn’t have long-term career plans.
“I consider myself retired,” Santos said. “I still do it not for the money, but because I still feel capable of doing it.”
Santos said he won’t make a formal retirement announcement on social media. He compared his status to being in the reserves after leaving the armed forces.
