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Santiago Ponzinibbio (born September 26, 1986) is an Argentine mixed martial artist competing as a Welterweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Background
He was born in Argentina to parents of Italian heritage, with paternal grandparents from Sicily. Ponzinibbio began training kickboxing when he was 13 years old growing up in Argentina. Ponzinibbio became interested in MMA, but there were too few local gyms in which he could pursue it. As a result, Ponzinibbio traveled to Florianópolis, Brazil, where he lived the first five months in a tent on a beach, doing some odd jobs to try make ends meet. Meanwhile, he trained at several nearby gyms. He turned professional in 2008 competing in regional promotions in South America.