Luana Santos
Brazilian mixed martial artist (born 2000)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Luana do Valle Lopes Gonzalez Santos (born 16 April 2000) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. She competes in the women's bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of 26 September 2026, she is #4 in the Meta UFC women's bantamweight rankings.[3]
16 April 2000
Bantamweight
| Luana Santos | |
|---|---|
Santos in 2025 | |
| Born | Luana do Valle Lopes Gonzalez Santos 16 April 2000 |
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)[1] |
| Weight | 135[1] lb (61 kg; 9 st 9 lb) |
| Division | Flyweight Bantamweight |
| Reach | 67 in (170 cm)[2] |
| Fighting out of | São Paulo, Brazil |
| Team | 011 MMA Team Team Lucas Mineiro[1] |
| Years active | 2021–present |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 13 |
| Wins | 11 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 5 |
| By decision | 5 |
| Losses | 2 |
| By decision | 2 |
| Other information | |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Early life
Santos was born on 16 April 2000, and grew up in São Paulo, Brazil.[1][4] She began competing in judo at age eight, following after her father who also competed in the sport.[5][6] Santos grew up a fan of Ronda Rousey and has been nicknamed the "Brazilian Ronda" based on her judo background and similar fighting style.[5][7] As a judoka, she made the national team and won a Continental Cup gold medal at the 2017 Cadet European Cup.[4] Santos participated in several international tournaments, including in Croatia and Germany.[4] At age 18, she became a black belt.[6]
Mixed martial arts career
Early career
Santos became a mixed martial artist by chance. She has explained that "I was watching a UFC event at a friend's house and her father was there with a friend ... I joked that I would do that one day, and her father's friend asked if it was for real. I said I'd do it, but never imagined it would go beyond that."[6] She was invited to train at the 011 MMA gym in São Paulo by the friend, who knew the team's owner.[6] "I did one MMA training and never stopped since", she said.[6]
Santos competed in her first MMA fight on the amateur level on 27 April 2019, under the SFT promotion, and won against Karine Cristine by unanimous decision.[1]
Santos won two more amateur bouts, one by technical knockout (TKO) and one by decision, before winning her first professional fight on 15 July 2021, by submission against Marjorie Barragan.[1]
Santos defeated Djulia Ariana by unanimous decision on 18 December 2021, and then Beatriz Ferreira by submission on 30 April 2022.[1]
Afterwards, Santos was signed by the Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA), competing as a flyweight.[4][8] In her first fight under the LFA promotion, she lost by split decision to Jena Bishop on 8 July 2022, the first loss of her career.[1][4] Santos later defeated Waleska Sousa on 4 November 2022, by unanimous decision, and Bartira Rodrigues on 10 March 2023, by technical submission.[1]
Ultimate Fighting Championship
In June 2023, it was reported that Santos signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.[9][10]
Santos faced Juliana Miller on 12 August 2023, at UFC on ESPN 51.[11] She won the fight via a first-round knockout, the first knockout of her professional career.[12]
Santos faced Stephanie Egger in a bantamweight bout on 9 December 2023, at UFC Fight Night 233.[13] At the weigh-ins, Santos weighed in at 139 pounds, three pounds over the bantamweight non-title fight limit. Her bout proceeded at catchweight with Santos being fined 20% of her purse which went to Egger.[14] Santos won the fight by unanimous decision.[15]
Santos faced Mariya Agapova on 13 July 2024, at UFC on ESPN 59.[16] She won the fight by a rear-naked choke in the first round.[17]
Replacing Tereza Bledá, Santos faced Casey O'Neill on 17 August 2024, at UFC 305.[18] She lost the fight by unanimous decision.[19]
Moving up to bantamweight, Santos faced Tainara Lisboa on 17 May 2025, at UFC Fight Night 256.[20] She won the fight via a keylock in the second round.[21]
Santos was scheduled to face Darya Zheleznyakova on 8 November 2025, at UFC Fight Night 264.[22] However, Zheleznyakova withdrew from the fight for unknown reasons and was replaced by Melissa Croden.[23] In turn, the bout was moved to UFC on ESPN 73 on 13 December 2025.[24] She won the fight by unanimous decision.[25]
Santos faced Karol Rosa on 20 June 2026, at UFC Fight Night 279.[26] She won the fight by unanimous decision.[27]
Santos is scheduled to face Yana Santos on 31 October 2026, at UFC Fight Night 292.[28]
Mixed martial arts record
| 13 matches | 11 wins | 2 losses |
| By knockout | 1 | 0 |
| By submission | 5 | 0 |
| By decision | 5 | 2 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 11–2 | Karol Rosa | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Kape vs. Horiguchi | 20 June 2026 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 10–2 | Melissa Croden | Decision (unanimous) | UFC on ESPN: Royval vs. Kape | 13 December 2025 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 9–2 | Tainara Lisboa | Submission (keylock) | UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Morales | 17 May 2025 | 2 | 4:59 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Return to Bantamweight. |
| Loss | 8–2 | Casey O'Neill | Decision (unanimous) | UFC 305 | 17 August 2024 | 3 | 5:00 | Perth, Australia | |
| Win | 8–1 | Mariya Agapova | Submission (rear-naked choke) | UFC on ESPN: Namajunas vs. Cortez | 13 July 2024 | 1 | 3:27 | Denver, Colorado, United States | |
| Win | 7–1 | Stephanie Egger | Decision (unanimous) | UFC Fight Night: Song vs. Gutiérrez | 9 December 2023 | 3 | 5:00 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Bantamweight bout; Santos missed weight (139 lb). |
| Win | 6–1 | Juliana Miller | TKO (punches) | UFC on ESPN: Luque vs. dos Anjos | 12 August 2023 | 1 | 3:41 | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |
| Win | 5–1 | Bartira Rodrigues | Technical Submission (guillotine choke) | LFA 154 | 10 March 2023 | 1 | 3:05 | Cajamar, Brazil | |
| Win | 4–1 | Waleska Sousa | Decision (unanimous) | LFA 146 | 4 November 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Cajamar, Brazil | |
| Loss | 3–1 | Jena Bishop | Decision (split) | LFA 135 | 8 July 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Phoenix, Arizona, United States | Flyweight debut. |
| Win | 3–0 | Beatriz Ferreira | Submission (keylock) | Standout Fighting Tournament 34 | 30 April 2022 | 3 | 0:26 | São Paulo, Brazil | |
| Win | 2–0 | Djulia Ariana | Decision (unanimous) | Standout Fighting Tournament 32 | 18 December 2021 | 3 | 5:00 | São Paulo, Brazil | |
| Win | 1–0 | Marjorie Barragan | Submission (scarf hold armlock) | Standout Fighting Tournament 27 | 15 July 2021 | 1 | 3:19 | São Paulo, Brazil | Bantamweight debut. |