Marlon Moraes shares some thoughts ahead of his bout against Brendan Loughnane on April 1.
Former UFC contender Marlon Moraes feels like he is home again. Once the World Series of Fighting bantamweight champion, the Brazilian has returned to the promotion that now goes by the name of Professional Fighters League last year for a chance to win its one million dollar prize money.
Having left the WSOF in 2016 to compete in the UFC, Marlon feels like his career has come full circle now that he is back. Though he did not win his debut, when he lost Sheymon Moraes, ‘Magic’ enjoys the relationship he has with the people at PFL, while claiming he did not feel satisfied anymore with the UFC.
“The people here are really cool. I have a great relationship with everyone in the promotion.” Moraes told Combate. “I feel like we started out with them, then they grew and now I see the PFL as one of the biggest promotions in the world,”
“I wasn’t pleased with the way my fights were going in the UFC,” Marlon said. “So that was the time to stop, think and make a decision. I felt like I still had a lot to give to the sport and I still have many fights left to give the people,”
Now competing at featherweight, Moraes will have his hand full in the first fight of the 2023 season. Paired up against 2022 tournament champion Brendan Loughnane, the Brazilian knows the task ahead is not easy. However, Marlon feels ready to surprise fans and shock the world.
“He’s a good guy. He’s fast, he’s a high volume fighter. He box, kick, take you down. He’s well-rounded. Nowadays, especially in the divisions bellow lightweight, everyone is well-rounded. You have to know everything in order to survive. It’s an MMA fight and I believe we’re going touch all areas and it’ll be a great fight. I’m ready to surprise everybody.”
Currently on a five-fight losing skid, Moraes (23-11-1) got knocked in all five outings, when he faced Cory Sandhagen, Rob Font, Merab Dvalishivili, Song Yadong and the aforementioned Moraes. The 34-year-old’s last win dates back December 2019, when he defeated Jose Aldo via split decision.
Now, Moraes is expected to take on Loughnane at PFL 1’s main event, on April 1, in Las Vegas, Nevada. The night’s co-main event is schedule to feature a bout for the season’s light heavyweight tournament, between fellow UFC veterans Thiago Santos and Rob Wilkinson.