Luana Santos said she does not believe the UFC will shut down its women’s bantamweight division after a future title fight between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes, brushing aside one of the biggest fears hanging over the class. Santos made the comments before her fight with Karol Rosa at UFC Vegas 119 on June 20.
The timing matters because the division’s future has become part of the conversation again as Harrison and Nunes move toward each other and as the UFC women’s 135-pound class continues to look thinner than the rest of the roster. Santos said she is not worried, saying the chatter about the division disappearing has grown around the lack of signings and Ketlen Vieira being released, but that she does not see that as a sign the UFC is about to close the weight class.
Santos pointed to the UFC’s recent track record as part of her case. The promotion shut down the featherweight division after Nunes retired in 2023, but kept bantamweight open after that same retirement, and Santos said that makes it hard for her to believe the UFC would now do the opposite. She also said she already has three finishes in the UFC and believes another strong performance could move her closer to a title shot, especially with the division still searching for fresh names.
That search is exactly where the friction sits. Santos said 135 is quieter and does not have enough fights, but she also said she thinks the lack of standout, marketable contenders is one reason the division is not going anywhere. In her view, the UFC still has too much invested in the class to walk away from it, even if she and others can see how limited the pipeline has become.
She also tied the division’s immediate future to the two biggest names in the conversation. Santos said Harrison has already suggested she would retire if the UFC does not reopen 145, and she believes both Harrison and Nunes would step away if they fight each other. For now, though, Santos said the division’s survival is not her concern. Her focus is on June 20, on adding another result to her record, and on proving she belongs in whatever version of 135 comes next.
