Before his debut, get acquainted with Daniel Santos

UFC 273: Who is Daniel Santos?

Daniel Santos aims to be the next big Brazilian UFC star, starting with his debut at UFC 273 in Jacksonville, FL.

Santos faces Julio Arce in the UFC 273 prelims this weekend. After two different fights were canceled for his first Octagon appearance, he finally gets his chance against another tough contender in Arce.

Before signing with the UFC, Santos found success in smaller promotions such as Brave CF and ACB. He caught the attention of UFC President Dana White and the rest of the leadership by earning a submission win over Nizambek Zhunusov at Brave CF 32.

Santos made his professional MMA debut against Caio Forastieri at the Minas Gerais Regional in Brazil. He was originally booked twice to face rising UFC star Adrian Yanez in Legacy and Bellator before both fights were canceled due to Santos’ visa issues.

Daniel Santos will make his UFC debut against Julio Arce at UFC 273

After suffering his first loss of his career against Murad Kalamov at ACA 91, he has recovered well with back-to-back wins over Henrique Fantini and Zhunusov. He also trains with some of the top UFC fighters in the world including lightweight champion Charles Oliveira and bantamweight Thomas Almeida.

Santos faces a tough first UFC Test against Arce, who has almost twice as much experience as Santos in the MMA cage and has victories over Dan Ige and Julian Erosa. Arce is looking to get back in the winning column after losing to Song Yadong last November.

Santos will look to steal the show early on at UFC 273 and prove he’s a legitimate bantamweight prospect to watch in 2022.

UFC 273: Alexander Volkanovski vs. Korean Zombie will be held live on Saturday, April 9, 2022 at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, FL. Follow FanSided MMA for all your news and highlights.