Santos accused of scamming sparring partners, taken to court

UFC women’s flyweight Taila Santos has apparently been taken to court after allegedly ripping off several fighters in Brazil.

Santos, the current No. 2 ranked contender at 125 pounds, has recently gone from a relatively underrated and underrated name in the Octagon to a woman seen as a serious threat to Valentina Shevchenko’s reign.

At UFC 275 in June, Santos traveled to Singapore aiming to achieve a feat that few gave her a chance to accomplish. But despite entering her title challenge as a strong underdog against a champion who had towered over everyone in her path, the Brazilian gave ‘Bullet’ her toughest test yet.

While she ultimately failed to make it to the scorecards – a decision that divided the opinions of fighters, fans and pundits – Santos’ performance was valiant enough to have many calling for her to receive a immediate revenge.

If that comes to fruition, she may find it difficult to find sparring partners or coaches.

Santos faces court battle over alleged payment failures

To reach the highest level of mixed martial arts, fighters need a dedicated team of professionals around them, both in terms of coaching and simulations provided by other fighters.

With this in mind, most athletes bring in fighters to help them prepare for camp, paying them for the services they provide. Well, it looks like Santos has done everything but that last step.

According to a report by Brazilian outlet O Município, the UFC’s top five flyweight, along with her husband, have been accused of “ripping off” at least three fighting professionals, including her own brother-in-law, Patrício Barbosa Farias.

In an exclusive interview with the publication, the individuals opened up about the apparent wrongdoing, saying they were employed to help Santos in his camp before being fired by his partner, Pedro Barbosa Farias, without payment.

“It was like that with me and two other teachers of hers. He got the teams together, promised (verbally) payments and contracts, but out of nowhere he got angry and interfered in the ‘training,” Patrício said. “After creating the plot, he fired the professionals, but never paid for the service provided to them.”

Patrício, who believes the scam originated in his brother’s mind but is endorsed by Santos, filed a police report after falling into debt following the failed payments.

“The blow is always the same and in the end it is both their fault. One has the idea and the other approves. They partner with you, train for a while, then leave, but they pay nothing. Just in this joke, I already have a debt of R$15,000.

Two coaches also apparently suffered from Santos’ plan – Marcio Malko of Thai Brasil Floripa and Marcelo Brigadeiro of Astra Fight.

In the images below, Santos can be seen alongside Malko (left) and Brigadeiro (right):

According to the report, after months of preparation ahead of Santos’ tremendous championship opportunity at UFC 275, Malko found himself without the agreed-upon compensation and received a letter stating that if he wanted to receive payment, he had to do so. take it to court.

That’s obviously exactly what they did, with both teams battling to secure the promised payouts through legal means. According to Brigadeiro, this is the first time he has encountered such a problem in MMA.

“I can say that in 26 years in the business, this is the first time that I have needed to go to court against an athlete. I think that already says a lot about everything.

After asking Santos’ husband for a comment, O Município wrote that an angry Farias had “offended” the reporting team, before insisting that everything would be revealed at the end of the proceedings.

What do you think of the allegations against former UFC title challenger Taila Santos?

All quotes and charges h/t O Município