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Luana Santos: New Home, Same Fighter
Flyweight Luana Santos Believes A Full Training Camp In Las Vegas Will Lead To Her Second UFC Finish Against Mariya Agapova At UFC Denver
Prior to her UFC debut, Luana Santos said she wanted to be feared. Mission accomplished.
After going 2-0 since, picking up her first professional KO in the process, Santos quickly became one of the flyweight division’s rising stars.
Her first test in the Octagon: The Ultimate Fighter Season 30 winner Juliana Miller. Santos passed with flying colors, finishing Miller via strikes in the first round. Four months later, Santos cruised her way to a unanimous decision victory over Stephanie Egger.
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While the result couldn’t look much better on paper - a win is a win, after all - Santos’ performance left a bitter taste in her mouth. That was evident by the lack of her celebratory dance featured after her debut victory.
“I won my last fight, but I wasn’t happy with the result,” Santos said. “I wasn’t happy with the fact that I got tired; it wore me off a little bit, I felt heavy, I didn’t feel like myself.
“I think I had opportunities against the fence to take her down easily. I do think there’s opportunities to improve my striking. I think my striking has evolved and it has improved, as you can see, when I got a knockout in my first fight, but every fight, you work to get better. I always find issues within my fights so I can improve and get better.
Since her fight with Egger in December of 2023, Santos decided to pack up and move camp from Sacramento to her new, permanent home in Las Vegas, Nevada. While Santos enjoyed her time in NorCal, after seeing the abundance of resources at her disposal at the UFC Performance Institute, it was a no-brainer to continue her mixed martial arts career in the fight capital.
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“Vegas is where the UFC is,” Santos said. “I see the PI, I see all the structures, I see everything I have access to. There’s no better place for a fighter to be at, and [I’ve made] some Brazilian friendships and they’re helping us train. I only see positives living in Vegas.
“I’m thinking of going back to the PI as often as possible, that’s where I’m going to train. I’m not going back to Brazil, not going back to Sacramento, either. Vegas is home now, and I’m only going to go back to Brazil for vacation.”
Luana Santos Fight Week Interview | UFC Denver
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Luana Santos Fight Week Interview | UFC Denver
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Unlike her last fight, where Santos, a flyweight, had only three weeks to prepare for a bantamweight matchup against Egger, Santos was afforded a 16-week camp for UFC Denver opponent Mariya Agapova.
“I always like to study my opponents, I always like to watch their fights,” Santos said. “I think she’s going to come out guns blazing because of the losses and she’s going to really try to get something out of this fight.
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“I worked on my striking for this one. I also worked on my fence game, grappling, takedowns and my ground game, so if you put all of those together, I hope that mix really works, right? We’ll see what’s going to happen.”
When UFC Denver comes to a close on Saturday night, Santos wants to leave Ball Arena in the same vein as she left the UFC APEX after her debut. Having spent 15 minutes with Egger, Santos already feels more than settled competing in the Octagon, and she hopes to build on her three first-round finishes by any means necessary.
“Either or,” Santos said when trying to choose between ending Saturday night’s bout with a knockout or a submission. “It doesn’t matter. I want both. As someone who likes to grapple by nature, that lives in my heart, a submission would be perfect.
“I really want this next fight to be like the first one. If need be, I’m ready for 15 minutes, as well.”
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A win over Agapova in The Mile High City will not only see Santos’ stock continue to rise in the 125-pound division, but the return of her post-fight tradition.
“[I’m] Luana the ‘TikTok Queen,’ as I was known,” Santos said. “I used to do those before I came to the UFC and I got to do it after my first fight. And, for sure, I win, you’re going to see some dancing from now on.”
UFC Fight Night: Namajunas vs Cortez took place live from Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado on July 13, 2024. See the Final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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