Maison Santos secured a knockout victory over Muhammad Naimov at UFC 323 despite missing weight by 1.5 pounds, and plans to continue competing at featherweight while targeting a future fight with Nate “The Train” Landwehr.
Maison Santos delivered a stunning knockout against Muhammad Naimov at UFC 323. It marked his first finish since winning the 32nd season of The Ultimate Fighter in 2024. However, this victory came with an asterisk due to a weight miss on December 4th.
Santos was 1.5 pounds over the featherweight limit in Las Vegas. He insisted he tried his best to make weight before the official weigh-ins. "Everyone knows we follow a super-hydration protocol," Santos shared with MMA Fighting. He had successfully made weight for his previous featherweight fight.
Typically, he began fight week at 158.7 pounds, starting his cut at 154.3. This time, things went awry. "I don’t know what happened, but my weight went up," he said. Instead of cutting from 154.3, he started at 158.7.
From Thursday to Friday, Santos dropped from 158.7 to 145.5 pounds. "I actually hit 147.2," he recalled. On Thursday night, he cut 11 pounds and still had 3.3 to go by morning. But only 1.5 came off.
Determined, he was the last to weigh in, trying everything, even the towel process. "I kept trying and trying," he said. He cut weight from 5 p.m. Thursday to 11 p.m., then started again at 5 a.m. Friday, finishing at 10. Despite his efforts, he couldn’t make weight.
Santos plans to continue competing at featherweight. "The Legend" believes 145 pounds is his ideal weight class, though he envisions a future at lightweight. He knows the UFC dislikes weight misses but feels it’s not a recurring issue.
"I made my debut early in the year with no problems," Santos pointed out. He plans to stay at featherweight, confident the UFC won’t force him to move up. Before UFC 323, Santos predicted a late knockout, which he achieved 21 seconds into the final round.
He attributes the fight’s length to Naimov’s hesitance. "I’m more of a counter-striker," Santos explained. Naimov seemed scared, throwing punches more to push Santos away than to hit him.
In the third round, Santos was determined. "I said I was going to finish this fight," he remembered. And he did, right at the start. Now 4-0 in the UFC, Santos had hoped to call out David Onama post-fight.
However, he doubts the promotion will reward him with a ranked opponent due to his weight miss. Eyeing a return by February or March, Santos has Nate "The Train" Landwehr in mind. "He’s an exciting guy," Santos noted.
Landwehr’s style, walking forward and throwing strikes without setup, might favor Santos. "I’d like to fight him," he concluded, looking forward to what comes next.