When Roman Bogatov hit the UFC, he did it with about as perfect a resume as a young fighter could hope to have. The 29-year-old had an unblemished 10-0 record, with six wins coming inside the distance. He had a reputation as a smothering, technical grappler. And had already beat a host of strong competition, including former UFC lightweight Mickael Lebout. At the time he faced them, Bogatov’s pre-UFC opponents had a combined record of 110-33-4.
All of which is to add extra context to the statement that Bogatov’s Octagon debut was an unmitigated disaster. The trouble started with Bogatov poking Santos in the eye in round one.