Yana Santos: UFC on ESPN 61 win over Chelsea Chandler was ‘career saving’

Winning at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 61 was a must for Yana Santos.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Yana Santos[/autotag] felt she was fighting for her job at UFC on ESPN 61.

The women’s bantamweight veteran entered Saturday’s bout against Chelsea Chandler on a three-fight losing streak, with her last win coming in 2021. Santos (15-8 MMA, 5-5 UFC) believed a fourth consecutive defeat could’ve cost her her job with the UFC.

“It was probably career-saving because I had three losses, and you never know what the UFC is going to do,” Santos said. “It doesn’t matter if my opponent misses weight, doesn’t matter if I came after delivery, it’s my problem, I accepted the fight.

“If I decide to go to Russia after delivery and go and fight is my problem, and they have all the right to cut me if I have four losses. I feel this was career-saving.”

Santos defeated Chandler (6-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) in a unanimous decision. Not only was the victory satisfying because she put an end to her losing streak, but also because Chandler had missed weight – something Santos didn’t take well.

Santos expected Chandler to use her perceived weight advantage in the bout, and was surprised it didn’t play a role in the fight.

“I felt her technique was so low in the part of wrestling,” Santos said. “What I was waiting is that she would be stronger and that she would put effort to put me down because that’s probably where she could use her weight, but it was pretty easy to defend the takedowns. It was a surprise for me because (the weight advantage) is important in wrestling and I thought it was going to use this.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 61.

UFC on ESPN 61 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Event yields second-lowest total of 2024

UFC on ESPN 61 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 61 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $128,000.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC on ESPN 61 took place at the UFC Apex. The card aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN 61 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Serghei Spivac[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Chepe Mariscal[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Damon Jackson[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Danny Barlow[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Nikolay Veretennikov[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Chris Gutierrez[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Quang Le[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Yana Santos[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Chelsea Chandler[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Toshiomi Kazama[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Charalampos Grigoriou[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Karol Rosa[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Pannie Kianzad[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Jhonata Diniz[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Karl Williams[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Youssef Zalal[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jarno Errens[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Stephanie Luciano[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Talita Alencar[/autotag]: $4,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,610; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $32,000 while title challengers get $42,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-61 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $4,914,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $27,651,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 61.

UFC on ESPN 61 video: Hear from each winner, guest fighters backstage

Check out what the UFC on ESPN 61 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS – UFC on ESPN 61 took place Saturday with 10 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

You can hear from all the UFC on ESPN 61 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 61.

UFC on ESPN 61: Yana Santos vs. Chelsea Chandler odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 61 odds between Yana Santos vs. Chelsea Chandler, with MMA picks and predictions.

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In a 3-round women’s bantamweight bout on the main card, Yana Santos and Chelsea Chandler meet Saturday at UFC on ESPN 61 — also known as UFC Vegas 95 — at the UFC APEX. Let’s analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the UFC on ESPN 61: Santos vs. Chandler odds, and make our expert picks and predictions.

The prelims begin 5 p.m. ET on ESPN/ESPN+, while the main card starts at 7 p.m. ET, also on ESPN/ESPN+.

Records: Santos (14-8-0) | Chandler (6-2-0)

Santos enters this fight on a 3-bout skid, falling to Karol Rosa last time out via split decision. Before that, Holly Holm defeated Santos by unanimous decision, and she was knocked out in Round 1 against Irene Aldana at UFC 264. Her last win was a unanimous-decision win over Ketlen Vieira Feb. 20, 2021.

For Chandler, she has 3 fights under her belt since arriving at the UFC level. She topped Josiane Nunes last time out via unanimous decision, but fell by way of unanimous decision against Norma Dumont prior to that. In her UFC debut, she dropped Julija Stoliarenko in Round 1 Oct. 1, 2022.

Santos has a 4.16-to-3.45 significant strikes landed per minute advantage, and she is much more accurate at 71.03%, to just 57.48% for Chandler. The underdog is slightly better in takedown average and accuracy.

Watch this card with ESPN+ by signing up here.

UFC on ESPN 61: Santos vs. Chandler odds

Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 11:35 a.m. ET.

  • Fight result (2-way line): Santos -156 (bet $156 to win $100) | Chandler +132 (bet $100 to win $132)
  • Over/Under: 2.5 rounds (Over -380 | Under +270)
  • Will the fight go the distance? (Yes -320 | No +230)

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UFC on ESPN 61: Santos vs. Chandler picks and predictions

Fight result (2-way line or moneyline)

SANTOS (-156) is fighting to stay with the promotion, as she cannot afford too many more losses. She needs to pick up the pace — and pick it up quickly.

Facing Chandler (+132) might be the perfect opponent to halt the skid. Santos is an accurate punching machine, and she’ll be able to get the job done against the southpaw.

As far as the method of victory is concerned, SANTOS BY POINTS (+100) at plus-money is a solid value. She has needed the help of the judges to determine a winner in each of her past 2 fights, and Santos has gone the distance in 4 of the past 5 fights and 6 of the previous 8 outings.

Chandler has gone the distance in each of her past 2 fights and 5 of her 8 pro bouts overall.

Over/Under (O/U)

Over 2.5 Rounds (-380) will cost you nearly 4 times your potential return, and Yes (-320): Will fight go the distance? will set you back 3 times your initial wager.

AVOID both props, as that is just way too much risk for not nearly enough reward.

Visit MMA Junkie for more fight news and analysis.

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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.

Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter/X. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter/X and us on Facebook.

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First UFC event of 2024 hit with multiple changes

The UFC’s 2024 campaign will soon kick off – and the first card of the year has experienced a makeover.

The first UFC event of 2024 has been hit with multiple lineup changes.

UFC Fight Night 234 takes place Jan. 13 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+. The lineup currently sits at 13 fights.

Over the past three days, however, that number has fluctuated with three withdrawals and two additions, as follows:

UFC on ESPN 48 post-event facts: Grant Dawson’s numbers show title trajectory

Check out all the facts and figures from UFC on ESPN 48, where Grant Dawson joined an exclusive club by putting together a nine-fight unbeaten streak in the octagon.

The UFC’s loaded July schedule got off to a hot start on Saturday with UFC on ESPN 48, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and featured six stoppages out of 12 fights.

One of those finishes came in the main event, when [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (27-5 MMA, 14-5 UFC) held serve as a top middleweight when he turned back [autotag]Abus Magomedov[/autotag] (25-5-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) with a second-round TKO before calling for a title shot.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check out MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC on ESPN 48.

UFC on ESPN 47 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Sean Strickland, Kevin Lee get most money

UFC on ESPN 47 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 47 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $144,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC on ESPN 47 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN 47 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Abus Magomedov[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Grant Dawson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Damir Ismagulov[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Michael Morales[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Max Griffin[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Ariane Lipski[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Melissa Gatto[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Benoit Saint-Denis[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Ismael Bonfim[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Nursulton Ruziboev[/autotag]: $4,000
def.[autotag]Brunno Ferreira[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Rinat Fakhretdinov[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Kevin Lee[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Joanderson Brito[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Westin Wilson[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Karol Rosa[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Yana Santos[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Elves Brener[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Guram Kutateladze[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Luana Carolina[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Ivana Petrovic[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Alexandr Romanov[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Blagoy Ivanov[/autotag]: $6,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $47,000 while title challengers get $47,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-47 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $4,109,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $18,698,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 47.

UFC on ESPN 47 pre-event facts: Kevin Lee returns with records intact

The best facts and figures about UFC on ESPN 47, which sees Kevin Lee return to the promotion with records on his resume.

The UFC’s rampant summer schedule continued on Saturday with UFC on ESPN 47, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and airs on ESPN/streams on ESPN+.

Opening a four-event lineup in July will be a middleweight headliner between [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (26-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC) and [autotag]Abus Magomedov[/autotag] (25-4-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC), who are scheduled for five rounds.

For more on the numbers behind the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s prevent facts about UFC on ESPN 47.

* * * *

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (June 12-18)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by a promotion from June 12-18.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (May 29-June 4)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by a promotion from May 29-June 4.