The Fortuitous Choices of Luana Santos

When Luana Santos was introduced to judo at the age of 8, no one could have known where it would lead. “My father signed me up,” she told Sherdog.com. “He wanted me to be in sports. He signed me and my brother up for judo since he had taken it as a child. I practiced from 8 until age 18. That’s when I earned my black belt.” From there, a series of fortunate events led Santos down an unlikely career path.

“I decided to migrate to MMA after watching a UFC card at a friend’s home in 2017,” she said. “I made an offhand remark that I wanted to fight MMA like Ronda Rousey. A friend of her father’s heard me and wanted to know if I was serious. I said I was curious, even though I wasn’t being serious.”

Soon after, Santos was taken to meet Helios Nogues Moyano—owner of the 011 MMA Team in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Her life was never the same.

“I had one training session, and I haven’t stopped,” Santos said. “I fell in love with the MMA world.”

Santos, now 23, has since emerged as one of the top prospects in Brazil. She will make her Ultimate Fighting Championship debut opposite “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 30 winner Juliana Miller as part of the UFC on ESPN 51 undercard this Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. A 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu rep, the 27-year-old Miller owns a 1-1 record inside the Octagon. She last appeared at UFC 286, where she wound up on the wrong side of a unanimous decision against Veronica Hardy on March 18.

“I did study Juliana by watching her fights,” Santos said. “I expect a hard fight. She has very good jiu-jitsu, and she’s a warrior on the feet. She’s not the type of fighter who gets hit and backs off. We did spot holes in her game, both in jiu-jitsu and striking. I expect I’ll bring better striking. It will be the beginning of the end for her.”

Santos enters her first UFC assignment on the strength of back-to-back victories. She last competed on March 10, when she put Bartira Rodrigues to sleep with a guillotine choke in the first round of their encounter under the Legacy Fighting Alliance banner. Not one to rest on her laurels, Santos put down some roots at Team Alpha Male ahead of her most significant opportunity to date.

“It’s where I did my entire training camp,” she said. “I’ve never been so well prepared as I am now.”

Just six fights into her career and with all signs pointing to the Brazilian having surrounded herself with the right people, Santos has laid out some clear short-term and long-term goals.

“My future plans are to be on firm footing in the UFC and renew my contract repeatedly,” she said. “I want to be known around the world. I wish for fans to like me. I want to serve as an inspiration for younger fighters. I want to make my mark.”