Taila Santos has broken her silence.
Santos makes her highly anticipated Professional Fighters League (PFL) debut today (Thurs., Apr. 4, 2024) against former Bellator fighter Ilara Joanne in the 2024 PFL regular season debut from inside Boeing Center in San Antonio, TX.
Santos’ decision to sign with PFL was very unexpected, especially given the Brazilian’s success inside the UFC. Ultimately, it came down to happiness, and Santos lacked that.
The 30-year-old’s relationship with her old promotion started to sour after UFC 275, where she lost a controversial close split decision to Valentina Shevchenko (watch highlights).
“Yeah, I was in the UFC, but I wasn’t very happy. Everything started when I fought for the belt against Valentina,’ Santos told MMA Junkie. I clearly won that fight, and it was one of the first tough fights Valentina ever had in her career. No other fighter had done what I did against her. I was able to take her down to the ground and keep her there while also blocking her attacks on the feet.”
Santos believed she deserved an automatic rematch with the Flyweight champion, considering how close the fight was, but she never got it. She got put on the shelf for 14 months and then faced surging contender Erin Blanchfield, which was her last fight for the promotion.
“So many people wanted to see the rematch, and the fans were asking for it. I believe I deserved the rematch, the opportunity, but it didn’t happen,” Santos said. “There were also some uncomfortable aspects around dates and the calendar. I would fight once, and then there would be no dates, and I would have to wait, and there were just so many delays. There wasn’t a calendar. It was a lot of waiting after each fight, and I wasn’t happy. So I just chose to fight out my contract and not renew.”
Santos will not have to worry about trying to figure out when her next fight is, as it is already scheduled. If she continues to win in PFL, the Brazilian will fight four times in a calendar year and have a chance to win $1,000,000 at the end of the year.
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