Luana Santos Eyes Title Push With Finish of Yana Santos

Luana Santos walks into UFC Vegas 123 on Saturday with a simple plan: finish Yana Santos early and force her way into the bantamweight title conversation. Both women arrive on three-fight win streaks for the 135-pound main-card bout at the APEX, and the 26-year-old Brazilian isn't shy about what a highlight-reel win would mean.

The timing is loaded. The division's spotlight shifts to Madison Square Garden two weeks later, where Kayla Harrison defends against Amanda Nunes (23-5, 13 KO, 4 SUB) at UFC 334 on Nov. 14. Luana sees Saturday as a turning point that could reshuffle the contender picture before that fight even lands.

The Queue Ahead of Her

Luana knows she's not next in line yet. Ailin Perez, ranked No. 5 at 14-2 with four KOs and two submissions, sits ahead of her alongside Joselyne Edwards, who's already been named backup for Harrison-Nunes. Both beat Norma Dumont in their last outings. Luana's pitch is that a knockout or submission over Yana would give her four UFC finishes and, at minimum, leave her a single win from a shot.

She also leaned into the marketing angle, arguing the UFC wasn't thrilled with Perez's last performance and that Perez has only one UFC submission to her name. Luana said she intends to ask for the title shot outright, framing herself as the more marketable option and letting the promotion decide what makes sense.

Yana's No Easy Night

The woman across from her is a serious obstacle. Yana Santos rebuilt her stock with wins over Macy Chiasson, Miesha Tate and Chelsea Chandler after a three-fight skid from 2021 to 2023. Luana credited her as unpredictable and tricky to read, and noted Yana holds a decade of age and far deeper octagon experience.

Still, Luana insists she's prepared for exactly this kind of fight. She said she's sharpened her boxing, tightened her jiu-jitsu and leaned hard into wrestling with one goal in mind. She's been competing since she was eight, and she wants this one finished early. If she pulls it off, the division's pecking order gets a lot more interesting before UFC 334.