Have Ilunga Makabu and Sean Santana ever fought each other?

Yes. Ilunga Makabu and Sean Santana met once on July 3, 2009, and Ilunga Makabu won by TKO in round 3.

Who has the better record, Makabu or Santana?

Ilunga Makabu is 31-4 and Sean Santana is 0-2 across the 2 bouts Kill The Body has tracked. Ilunga Makabu has the higher win percentage. Records shown as tracked have not yet been independently verified as complete career totals.

Who has more knockouts, Makabu or Santana?

Ilunga Makabu has 27 knockout wins and Sean Santana has 0. Ilunga Makabu has more.

Do Makabu and Santana have any common opponents?

Ilunga Makabu and Sean Santana share 1 common opponent: Thabiso Mchunu. Ilunga Makabu fared better against 1 of them.

How much fight data does Kill The Body have on Makabu and Santana?

This comparison is drawn from 36 bouts tracked for Ilunga Makabu and 2 bouts tracked for Sean Santana. Method and activity splits reflect those bouts only.

Ilunga Makabu vs Sean Santana — Records, Stats & Common Opponents

🇨🇩DR CONGO

Ilunga Makabu

🇿🇦SOUTH AFRICA

Sean Santana

Ilunga Makabu (31-4) and Sean Santana (0-2 across 2 tracked bouts) are compared on record, finishing method, activity, and common opponents on Kill The Body. The two have met once. They share 1 common opponent.

Makabu

Wins27 KO · 87%

Losses

Draws36 tracked bouts

Santana

Tracked record

0–2

counted from 2 bouts Kill The Body has ingested

Heads up: at least one of these records is a tracked record — the wins and losses Kill The Body has ingested so far, not an independently verified career total. Treat the comparison as a read on the bouts we hold, not a settled ledger.

Head to Head

Makabu leads 1–0

Ilunga Makabu and Sean Santana have met 1 time; Makabu leads 1–0.
Met	2009Jul 3	Series
Ilunga MakabuFighter A	WWon	1–0W–L
Sean SantanaFighter B	LLost	0–1W–L
Result	TKOR3Makabu vs Santana	1Meeting

Makabu vs Santana · Jul 3, 2009

The Numbers

Makabu 4 · Santana 1 of 5 measurable rows

MakabuEdge = longer wingSantana

Record^†: 31-4 (edge)0-2
Win %0–100%: 88.6% (edge)
0%
Wins by knockoutmax 27: 27 (edge)
0
KO ratenot comparable: 87.1%—
Stoppage rate (tracked wins)^‡not comparable: 88%—
Times stopped^‡max 4: 4
2 (edge)
Title reignsmax 1: 1 (edge)
0
Bouts per year^§not comparable: 2.1—
Bouts trackedcoveragemax 36: 36
2

† One or both records are tracked, not career-verified. · ‡ Counted from bouts Kill The Body has ingested, not a career total. · § Across each fighter's tracked career span. · Bars are scaled per row — percentages on 0–100, counts against the larger of the two. Every figure is also printed as text.

Tale of the Tape

Heightnot held: Ilunga Makabu: 6′0″; Sean Santana: No height on file
Reachnot held: Ilunga Makabu: 74″; Sean Santana: No reach on file
Age11 yrs apart: Ilunga Makabu: 38; Sean Santana: 49
Stance: Ilunga Makabu: Southpaw; Sean Santana: Not recorded

Ilunga Makabu left, Sean Santana right, as everywhere on this page. Age is stated, not scored — neither age nor stance carries an edge.

How They Win

Tracked bouts only

Ilunga Makabu32 wins · from 36 tracked bouts

28 by KO/TKO 88%4 on the cards 13%

Sean Santana0 wins · from 2 tracked bouts

No tracked wins for Santana yet.

One square per tracked win. Counted from the bouts Kill The Body has ingested for each fighter — Ilunga Makabu 36, Sean Santana 2 — not from a career-complete method table.

Common Opponents

1 shared

1 shared · Makabu better on 11 shared · Ilunga Makabu better on 1

MakabuIlunga Makabu

Opponent

SantanaSean Santana

Ilunga Makabu
2–0 against
Win, SD
2022Jan 2022
Win, KO 11
2015May 2015
MchunuThabiso MchunuSouth Africa 23–8Makabu betterIlunga Makabu better — 2–0 to 0–1
Sean Santana
Loss, RTD 6
2008Jul 2008

Both sides are set at the same size on purpose. Kill The Body does not score a second-round knockout above a split decision — the edge counts losses first and wins as the tiebreak, and the rest is yours to argue. Shared opponents are matched on fighter identity, not on name, so two different fighters with the same name never merge into one row.

Current Form

Oldest left · newest right

Ilunga Makabu has won two straight since losses to Badou Jack and Noel Mikaelian. Makabu last boxed on Sep 5, 2025 — 415 days ago.WLLWW

Mchunu Jan 2022Jack Feb 2023Mikaelian Nov 2023Attia Dec 2024Kemeh Sep 20252.1 tracked bouts per year

Sean Santana last boxed on Jul 3, 2009 — 6,323 days ago. Santana had lost two straight.LL

Mchunu Jul 2008Makabu Jul 2009

Common Questions

With the rows behind them

Have Ilunga Makabu and Sean Santana ever fought each other?: Yes. Ilunga Makabu and Sean Santana met once on July 3, 2009, and Ilunga Makabu won by TKO in round 3.
Who has the better record, Makabu or Santana?: Ilunga Makabu is 31-4 and Sean Santana is 0-2 across the 2 bouts Kill The Body has tracked. Ilunga Makabu has the higher win percentage. Records shown as tracked have not yet been independently verified as complete career totals.
Who has more knockouts, Makabu or Santana?: Ilunga Makabu has 27 knockout wins and Sean Santana has 0. Ilunga Makabu has more.
Do Makabu and Santana have any common opponents?: Ilunga Makabu and Sean Santana share 1 common opponent: Thabiso Mchunu. Ilunga Makabu fared better against 1 of them.
How much fight data does Kill The Body have on Makabu and Santana?: This comparison is drawn from 36 bouts tracked for Ilunga Makabu and 2 bouts tracked for Sean Santana. Method and activity splits reflect those bouts only.

Compare someone else

4 suggested matchups

Compare Makabu with…

Compare Santana with…

SantanavsThabiso Mchunu23-8Fought Jul 2008 · L RTD

Someone else?

Release either fighter to put someone new in that slot — the other one stays put.

Ilunga Makabu vs Sean Santana — record, stats and common opponents compared

Ilunga Makabu

Sean Santana