Former teacher training at Lynbrook gym to become MMA pro

For four years, Lisa Santisteban taught high school English at Andries Hudde Junior High School and Mott Hall Bridges Academy in Brooklyn. But after attending a kickboxing cardio class in 2012, Santisteban discovered her true passion: Mixed martial arts fighting.

“It makes me feel much happier,” she said.

The Lawrence resident started pursuing martial arts because she wanted to lose weight, and after one year of regular practice, she lost 100 pounds. Santisteban, 29, said she prefers MMA to a mechanical workout because the focus is on winning a fight. “It’s not just going to a regular gym, you’re not going on a machine for 20 minutes,” she said. “You’re actually burning calories without even thinking about it.”

Santisteban has been training throughout Long Island. She managed and taught at the ILoveKickboxing gym in Great Neck, and at the UFC Gym in New Hyde Park. But in April, Santisteban said she “found her home” at Budokan Martial Arts in Lynbrook.

Now she trains there at least once a day, and on May 8, she signed a professional management contract with Matt Culley from Valley Stream-based Battlescar Management. “We are proud to welcome Lisa ‘The Beast’ Santisteban to the Battlescar Management Team,” Battlescar Management representatives wrote on Facebook after the signing. “Lisa is a talented young fighter with a bright future ahead.”

As an amateur heavyweight, Santisteban has not lost once in her nine fights. She has six gold medals and, according to WMMARankings.com, Santisteban is currently the highest ranked women’s amateur heavyweight in the world, and the fifth highest out of every weight division.

This success is partially due to her work with Sensei Nardu Debrah at Budokan Martial Arts. Debrah has several awards for his accomplishments in martial arts, and is known for training Long Island professional MMA fighters. Currently, he is training professional fighter Randy “Rude Boy” Brown, who has won nine professional matches and only lost twice.

Debrah said he is training Santisteban to be his next professional fighter after Brown. It may take some time for her to become a professional, however. “It all depends on the person, it depends on the circuit, it depends on the individual and their effort,” Debrah said.

But Santisteban is already putting in the effort to become a professional. She trains at Budokan at least once a day, and is always learning new moves. Sheneven gave up red meat, and is trying to eat healthier to stay in shape. “She’s very hard working,” said Culley. “She’s also open to learning, which is a big part of being a fighter.”

To continue to learn, Santisteban encouraged her boyfriend, Matthew Cosentino, to be her training partner. Cosentino took martial arts classes during his summer vacations from Buffalo State College, but he did not continue with the sport. “When I started going out with Lisa, she saw that I had this hidden passion for it as well, and she’s been helping me get motivated to get back into it as well,” Cosentino said. Now, Santisteban said, she considers Cosentino to be her best training partner.

If she is successful as a professional, Santisteban plans to use her winnings to open her own fitness center, where she will teach others about mixed martial arts fighting. “I want to come back and have people want to train with Lisa, the pro fighter,” she said.

Santisteban is currently looking for her next competitor, but in the mean time, fans can follow her progress on her Facebook page, “Lisa ‘The Beast’ Santisteban” at https://www.facebook.com/lisabeastmode/.