Evangelista Santos Didn’t Want A GoFundMe In His Name

In an interview with MMA Junkie reports that Evangelista Santos spoke about the GoFundMe account his wife started after he received a skull fracture from Michael Page at Bellator 158. After the sickening injury, Bellator President Scott Coker said that Bellator will pay all of his medical bills and give him his win bonus even though he lost the fight. Here are highlights:

On how he’s feeling after the injury: “People exaggerate. I’m fine. I’m at my hotel. I’m feeling fine. I chose not to go to the hospital (in London). I opted to have my surgery in Houston. I’m fine. Nothing happened. I wasn’t knocked out. I only felt the pain from the fracture. At no time did I have any symptoms like convulsions or dizziness. It wasn’t a knockout. It was a fracture. It didn’t affect my brain. Everything is OK. People are crazy. I don’t need anything. At no time did Bellator refuse to help me.”

On wanting to give back: “Ever since I was a child, I’ve wanted to repay, from my heart, the sense of security and direction I received at this project. Today I’m the fruit of their labors. So I wish to use the money that has been raised to launch a great dream of mine, to offer martial arts, literature and English classes. That way, we can prepare new champions for the fight that is life, and encourage them to use their full potential – intellectual, physical and technical.”

On the money raised from the GoFundMe: “Bellator took responsibility for my hospital costs. They paid my win bonus. As such, I don’t find it fair that I should use the money for my own benefit. Even in a loss, I was blessed by the prayers and care of everyone in the fight world. May God bless each and every person for their positive thoughts, prayers and contributions. May the blessings also reach your families. And may God also bless Cris, who was so shocked by those images. Thank you for your friendship and concern.”