Luana Santos
Brazil
Cruises to third straight win
Santos defeated Karol Rosa via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
This was actually a fairly underwhelming performance from Santos when you take into account she landed a pair of takedowns and a whopping 12:21 worth of control time. She was credited with just nine significant strikes landed despite all the time she spent in a dominant position. That said, Rosa was able to get absolutely nothing going the entire fight and Santos did a nice job of staying busy enough to make sure referee Mike Beltran didn't stand the two women up. The end result was the clearest 30-27 decision you will ever see. Santos has quietly won three straight and six of seven dating back to August 2023.
This was actually a fairly underwhelming performance from Santos when you take into account she landed a pair of takedowns and a whopping 12:21 worth of control time. She was credited with just nine significant strikes landed despite all the time she spent in a dominant position. That said, Rosa was able to get absolutely nothing going the entire fight and Santos did a nice job of staying busy enough to make sure referee Mike Beltran didn't stand the two women up. The end result was the clearest 30-27 decision you will ever see. Santos has quietly won three straight and six of seven dating back to August 2023.
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Scheduled for UFC Vegas 119
Santos will fight fellow bantamweight Karol Rosa at UFC Vegas 119 on June 20, according to Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Las Vegas treated Santos well in 2025, whose two fights there saw the bantamweight handily defeat Tainara Lisboa (via keylock submission) and Melissa Croden (via unanimous decision). Entering age 26 for UFC Vegas 119, Santos will try to stop the momentum of Rosa, who most recently outlasted Nora Cornolle back in August.
Las Vegas treated Santos well in 2025, whose two fights there saw the bantamweight handily defeat Tainara Lisboa (via keylock submission) and Melissa Croden (via unanimous decision). Entering age 26 for UFC Vegas 119, Santos will try to stop the momentum of Rosa, who most recently outlasted Nora Cornolle back in August.
Leans on grappling in victory
Santos defeated Melissa Croden via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
It was far from pretty, but Santos kept things simple and employed an effective game plan. Neither combatant landed any notable blows, but the Brazilian's three successful takedowns and 9:21 worth of control time ensured she would be the one winning a decision. On a less positive note, Santos managed just a dozen significant strikes, an unfathomable number given how much of the fight she spent in a dominant position. Still just 25 years old and sporting a 5-1 record in her first half-dozen UFC fights, it's impossible to argue with the results thus far, but the limited power Santos possesses figures to hurt her sooner or later.
It was far from pretty, but Santos kept things simple and employed an effective game plan. Neither combatant landed any notable blows, but the Brazilian's three successful takedowns and 9:21 worth of control time ensured she would be the one winning a decision. On a less positive note, Santos managed just a dozen significant strikes, an unfathomable number given how much of the fight she spent in a dominant position. Still just 25 years old and sporting a 5-1 record in her first half-dozen UFC fights, it's impossible to argue with the results thus far, but the limited power Santos possesses figures to hurt her sooner or later.
Croden fight moved
Santos is scheduled to compete against Melissa Croden in a bantamweight fight at UFC Vegas 112 on Dec. 13, per Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Santos and Croden will have more than a month to prepare for their upcoming bout. Initially slated to fight the 2-1 Daria Zhelezniakova, the former got a new opponent on Oct. 23.
Santos and Croden will have more than a month to prepare for their upcoming bout. Initially slated to fight the 2-1 Daria Zhelezniakova, the former got a new opponent on Oct. 23.
Gets new opponent
Santos will now take on Melissa Croden in a bantamweight bout at UFC Vegas 111 on November 8, per Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Santos was initially slated to face the 2-1 Daria Zhelezniakova in November, but the latter has been pulled from the card for undisclosed reasons. Now, she'll get to face a less experienced fighter in Croden, who is 1-0 in the UFC after besting Tianara Lisboa on Oct. 18. Santos herself will be looking to improve on her impressive 4-1 mark in the promotion.
Santos was initially slated to face the 2-1 Daria Zhelezniakova in November, but the latter has been pulled from the card for undisclosed reasons. Now, she'll get to face a less experienced fighter in Croden, who is 1-0 in the UFC after besting Tianara Lisboa on Oct. 18. Santos herself will be looking to improve on her impressive 4-1 mark in the promotion.
Set for UFC Vegas 111
Santos will take on Daria Zhelezniakova in a bantamweight matchup at UFC Vegas 111 on Nov. 8, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Santos has posted a solid 4-1 record in the UFC with three finishes, most recently submitting Tainara Lisboa in May to rebound from her only loss. She now draws Zhelezniakova, who is 2-1 in the UFC and coming off a unanimous decision victory over Melissa Mullins in June. She'll give up slight height and reach advantages to Zhelezniakova, who also has superior striking marks (albeit over a smaller sample size). Santos also has the better wrestling stats, most notable takedown average, as she has accumulated 1.91 takedowns per 15 minutes of fight time and registered one or more in each of her last four bouts.
Santos has posted a solid 4-1 record in the UFC with three finishes, most recently submitting Tainara Lisboa in May to rebound from her only loss. She now draws Zhelezniakova, who is 2-1 in the UFC and coming off a unanimous decision victory over Melissa Mullins in June. She'll give up slight height and reach advantages to Zhelezniakova, who also has superior striking marks (albeit over a smaller sample size). Santos also has the better wrestling stats, most notable takedown average, as she has accumulated 1.91 takedowns per 15 minutes of fight time and registered one or more in each of her last four bouts.