UFC Star Set to Face Unranked Contender in Dangerous Fight at UFC Paris

Which featherweight will extend their win streak in Paris?

(Zuffa LLC)

A top-ranked UFC contender has signed on for a surprisingly dangerous matchup for the promotion’s upcoming UFC Paris card.

Scheduled to take place at the Accor Arena on September 5, the latest edition of UFC Paris marks the fifth consecutive year that the UFC has made the trip over to Europe to hold an event in the French capital.

No main event has been announced for the card as of yet, but in recent weeks UFC Paris has added a number of high-profile bouts that are sure to get fight fans excited for the card.

Nathaniel Wood Looks to Defend Ranking at UFC Paris

First reported by Marcel Dorff, top-ranked featherweight contender Nathaniel Wood will look to extend his current four-fight win streak when he takes on Mairon Santos at UFC Paris.

A former Cage Warriors bantamweight champion, Wood joined the UFC in 2018 and submitted three-straight opponents before falling to former UFC title challenger John Dodson in 2020.

Nathaniel Wood at weigh-ins for UFC Fight Night at O2 Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Following a 4-2 start to his UFC career, “The Last Kingsman” made the move up to the featherweight division in 2022 and made an immediate impact with back-to-back decisions over Charles Rosa and Charles Jourdain.

Nathaniel Wood (red gloves) fights Losene Keita (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at O2 Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The 32-year-old would win his first three featherweight outings before dropping a decision to Muhammad Naimov at UFC 294, but since then he’s won four-straight fights and most recently spoiled Losene Keita’s promotional debut at UFC London in March.

Mairn Santos is Undefeated Since Joining the UFC

Wood currently occupies the #9 spot in the Meta UFC rankings for the featherweight division, which presents a huge opportunity for the unranked Santos when he meets the Englishman at UFC Paris.

Boasting a 17-1 record, Santos won a pair of decisions on The Ultimate Fighter Season 32 and went on to stop Kaan Ofli with strikes in the finals to become the season’s featherweight tournament winner.

Mairon Santos (blue gloves) reacts after the fight against Muhammad Naimov (red gloves) during UFC 323 at T-Mobile Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After winning TUF in 2024, Santos competed twice in 2025 and took a split decision over Francis Marshall before all three judges gave him the nod in his meeting with featherweight staple Sodiq Yusuff.

Muhammad Naimov (red gloves) fights Mairon Santos (blue gloves) during UFC 323 at T-Mobile Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

“The Legend” knocked out Wood’s former opponent Naimov early in the third round of his most recent outing at UFC 323, but Santos did unfortunately miss the featherweight limit by 1.5 pounds ahead of that fight.

UFC Paris Fight Card

Michael Page vs. Nursulton Ruziboev

Losene Keita vs. Muhammad Naimov

Mario Pinto vs. Ryan Spann

Oumar Sy vs. Modestas Bukauskas

Kurtis Campbell vs. Trevor Peek

Luis Felipe Dias vs. Matthieu Duclos

Nora Cornolle vs. Klaudia Sygula

Fabia Sintes vs. Michael Aljarouj

Nathaniel Wood vs. Mairon Santos