Yana Santos picked up one of the biggest wins of her career after beating a former champion and likely Hall of Famer in Miesha Tate at UFC Des Moines on Saturday.
Using a superior striking attack, Santos cracked Tate with several stinging combinations through the first two rounds that gave her a lead on the scorecards. While Tate made a valiant effort with a late takedown, she wasn’t able to get the finish and Santos survived to secure the victory.
In the end, all three judges agreed on the same 29-28 scorecards with Santos earning the win — her second in a row overall.
“I want to say thank you to my opponent,” Santos said about Tate. “She’s my all-time favorite fighter. It’s more than my dream that I have a win over her. I’m happy that I won it.”
Coming out like a ball of fire, it was Tate who was on the attack from the jump looking to connect with stiff punches and then transitioning to takedown attempts. Santos did a good job weathering the storm and then firing back with some solid counters and well-timed elbows on the inside whenever the fight got locked in the clinch.
As time passed, Santos was really starting to dig to the body and then going back up top to the head with a slick lead jab. Santos was also mixing in some leg kicks that were clearly affecting Tate’s movement.
While Tate was doing her best to stay in pursuit, Santos was circling away and then measuring her strikes to do maximum damage to the former champion. Even when Tate tried to use her wrestling, she wasn’t effectively driving forward and Santos was able to shrug her off with relative ease.
With five minutes remaining and Santos up two rounds, Tate was forced to take some chances and that finally led to her first takedown. Tate constantly battled to improve her position as she moved from half-guard to the mount and then eventually taking Santos’ back.
Tate was desperately trying to find a home for a submission but Santos continued to fight off every attempt to survive until the final horn. Ultimately, Tate ran out of time and Santos knew she had sone more than enough to get the nod after three hard-fought rounds.
A constant presence at bantamweight for the past few years, Santos can add Tate to her win column as she looks to continue climbing up the ranks. As for Tate, the 38-year-old veteran falls to 2-3 in her past five fights since returning from retirement in 2021.
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