Andy Lang backed the Santos side, repeating his long-standing rule against wagering on fighters sporting fresh veneers or Botox—an indirect ding on Tate’s current mindset. He warned that if Tate’s first takedown attempts fail, her striking deficit will be apparent and Santos will "piece her up" with enough volume to sway judges or score a late finish. Lang is passing pre-fight but plans to fire a live bet on Santos once she stuffs a couple of shots, believing Tate’s path is binary top-control and nothing else.

Jim Malaro refused to lay chalk on 2025-era Miesha Tate, calling her last outing a retirement win over a checked-out Julia Avila and asserting the sport has passed Tate by. Santos, training full-time with husband Thiago Santos and allegedly on “special vitamins,” only needs a few initial sprawls to expose Tate’s faded wrestling. Because Santos throws the heavier strikes and Tate’s veneer-installing lifestyle raises focus concerns, Malaro will either grab the pre-fight underdog price or hit Santos live the moment a couple of takedowns are stuffed.

Jeff Fox took the +120 on Yana Santos, arguing recent cage time and cleaner boxing tilt a coin-flip fight her way. Santos fought twice in the past 12 months and just out-pointed Chelsea Chandler, while Miesha Tate has logged one bout since 2022. Fox highlighted Santos’s +1.3 significant-strike differential (4.01 landed per minute) and her Muay Thai pedigree, contrasting it with Tate’s –0.36 margin and historically porous striking defense (53 %). He concedes Santos must mind Tate’s double-leg but noted Tate is 2-4 in her last six, 37 years old, and has shown declining athleticism at 135. With Santos three years younger, owning a three-inch reach edge, and likely winning every pure stand-up exchange, Fox believes the Russian can stuff just enough shots to take a decision or possibly force a doctor’s stoppage, making the modest underdog number playable.