UFC light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker was “scared as hell” against Thiago Santos at UFC Vegas 38, says his opponent’s coach.

In what was expected to be a slugfest between two Brazilian KO artists, the fight was anything but. Both Walker and Santos were content to stand on the outside and essentially spar for five rounds, with Santos earning a unanimous decision victory at the end of the 25 minutes. It was not the fight that the fans expected and many of them took to social media to vent their complaints following the fight. But while many have put the blame on Santos for making it a tactical fight, his coach believes that it is actually Walker’s fault that it was.

Speaking to AG Fight, American Top Team’s boxing coach Gabriel de Oliveira put the onus on Walker for producing a dull fight, saying that he was “scared as hell” of Santos.

“If the fight wasn’t exciting, it was Johnny Walker himself who didn’t come to the fight. The ‘Sledgehammer’ was in control of the fight. I saw him win four rounds. Johnny Walker was ‘sh*t’, scared as hell. He didn’t come to fight. That’s not what it presented. But the audience is complicated. If ‘Sledgehammer’ knocks him out I would say that Johnny Walker is weak. If Johnny Walker knocks him out, they’d say he’s better than Jon Jones. There’s always someone to talk to,” said the coach of the Walker vs. Santos fight.

“The idea was to be strategic, but if Johnny Walker came to the fore, ‘Marreta’ has a very heavy hand and is a counter-attacker too. If the guy didn’t go for him, he couldn’t go up like that because the guy is also dangerous, he could get a crazy move, since he’s unpredictable. A defeat could mean a resignation for the ‘Sledgehammer’ in the company (getting cut by the UFC). It’s about continuing to do our job, picking up the next fights and shooting the guys. The ‘Sledgehammer’ will get his hands on them.”

What do you think should be next for Johnny Walker after losing to Thiago Santos at UFC Vegas 38?