Brazilian finisher, Renato Moicano finds himself in the midst of another winning run during his Octagon tenure — chalking up his second consecutive victory with a second round rear-naked choke win against Alexander Hernandez on the main card of UFC 271. Adding Hernandez to a prior victory over former Cage Warriors lightweight best, Jai Herbert, […]
Brazilian finisher, Renato Moicano finds himself in the midst of another winning run during his Octagon tenure — chalking up his second consecutive victory with a second round rear-naked choke win against Alexander Hernandez on the main card of UFC 271.
Adding Hernandez to a prior victory over former Cage Warriors lightweight best, Jai Herbert, Moicano, a former interim featherweight champion under the Jungle Fight banner in his native Brazil — showed off his eye-catching Muay Thai upstairs against Hernandez in the run-up to the finish.
Wobbling Hernandez with a straight right hand, Moicano then wound up on top from a frail takedown attempt, and took Hernandez’s back. Securing a body triangle, Moicano latched onto a rear-naked choke, forcing an eventual tap from Hernandez.
Below, catch the highlights from Renato Moicano’s win over Alexander Hernandez
UFC featherweight Cub Swanson sent some advice to Alexander Hernandez after the lightweight complained about his original placement on this Saturday’s UFC 271 card. Entering 2019, Hernandez was a highly-touted and fast-rising prospect following victories over current top-five contender Beneil Dariush and Olivier Aubin-Mercier in his first two Octagon outings. But since then, “The Great”…
UFC featherweight Cub Swanson sent some advice to Alexander Hernandez after the lightweight complained about his original placement on this Saturday’s UFC 271 card.
Entering 2019, Hernandez was a highly-touted and fast-rising prospect following victories over current top-five contender Beneil Dariush and Olivier Aubin-Mercier in his first two Octagon outings.
But since then, “The Great” has exchanged wins and losses, going 3-3 in his last six. After rebounding from his latest setback against Thiago Moisés with a first-round knockout against Mike Breeden last October, Hernandez will be looking to begin his first win streak since 2018 when he returns to action this weekend.
While the Brazilian does boast UFC triumphs over Calvin Kattar, Jeremy Stephens, and Zubaira Tukhugov, defeats at the hands of Brian Ortega, José Aldo, “The Korean Zombie,” and Rafael Fiziev have prevented the 32-year-old from breaking into contention.
Having returned to form last time out with a second-round submission against Jai Herbert, Moicano will look to continue his momentum at UFC 271.
Despite this matchup pitting two recognizable names against each other, it initially found itself on this weekend’s early prelims, before being bumped to the main card following post-weigh-in alterations.
While some would be eager to impress on the grand stage of a pay-per-view card wherever their placement on it, Hernandez was less than pleased before the change.
“Man, I’m fired the f*ck up because of the amount of disrespect that the UFC is showing me on this card,” Hernandez told MMA Fighting on the We Got Next podcast. “We have to wait four months and then I’m on the early f*cking prelims. I mean, that incites such a rage in me so I’m coming to make a statement. I’m so fired up about that. I’m so pissed off and I’m so motivated, so I’m really eager to make a statement.”
Hernandez went on to suggest that those who were above him in the previous bout order are “statistically” below him in the promotion. That, coupled with the fact his home in San Antonio is less than 200 miles from the location of UFC 271, left the 29-year-old incredibly “frustrated” at his position.
“I’m in my state, I’m practically in my city, the only other guy [from] there [fighting outside of the early prelims] is Derrick Lewis—and rightfully so, he’s the co-main,” Hernandez added. “But how the f*ck did I get on the early, early prelims? It’s not even the prelims. Not on the main card, not on the [ESPN] prelims, it’s my peers that are barely above me, or people that are statistically below that are above me [on the card]. I’m frustrated, plus we’re in Texas.
“I’m gonna go out there, please the 15 people in the audience, get my 20-30 homies hyped. I’m gonna take out Moicano and make a statement and let them know not to discredit, or disrespect me like that again. I’m so fired up about it.”
Swanson Sends Hernandez Some Advice
After receiving some heavy criticism for his comments from fans, it didn’t take long for one of Hernandez’s UFC peers to give his take.
In a tweet, featherweight veteran Cub Swanson cited the example of his rise from the early prelims to a main event spot in the space of two fights as the reason Hernandez shouldn’t have looked down on his place on the UFC 271 card.
I once got bumped from Co-main to FightPass prelims. Instead of complaining, I made it a point to hype up FightPass. I ended up getting a hand written letter from the UFC thanking me and I headlined a card two fights later
“I once got bumped from Co-main to FightPass prelims. Instead of complaining, I made it a point to hype up FightPass. I ended up getting a handwritten letter from the UFC thanking me and I headlined a card two fights later.”
Wherever his placement on the card, whether on the early prelims as initially planned or on the main card as is now set, one thing has always been clear ahead of Hernandez’s first appearance of 2022: a win is crucial.
With that sentiment being similar across the cage in Moicano’s corner, this clash should provide an intriguing affair inside Houston’s Toyota Center.
What’s your take on Alexander Hernandez’s comments? Should he have followed the mindset of Cub Swanson?
Lightweights Alexander Hernandez and Renato Moicano will both be aiming to secure back-to-back wins when they meet at UFC 271. MMA JUNKIE was the first to report the matchup, which will take place February 12 at a yet-to-be-announced location. Hernandez (13-4) will go into the bout on the back of a sensational first-round KO of […]
Lightweights Alexander Hernandez and Renato Moicano will both be aiming to secure back-to-back wins when they meet at UFC 271.
MMA JUNKIE was the first to report the matchup, which will take place February 12 at a yet-to-be-announced location.
Hernandez (13-4) will go into the bout on the back of a sensational first-round KO of Mike Breeden earlier this month. The 29-year-old has been hot and cold in the UFC since defeating Beneil Dariush on debut in 2018. He followed that win up with one over Olivier Aubin-Mercier, before losing to Donald Cerrone via TKO in his next fight. Including that crushing defeat, Hernandez has lost half of his last six fights.
Alexander Hernandez vs. Mike Breeden in their October 2 fight. PHOTO: MMA FIGHTING
Moicano (15-4-1) got back to winning ways in June by defeating Jai Herbert via second-round rear-naked choke. The former 145-pounder had stepped up to the lightweight division in March last year, earning a 44-second submission victory over Damir Hadzovic. In December, Moicano lost to Rafael Fiziev via first-round KO—an outcome that the Brazilian later protested as an early stoppage.
Renato Moicano lands a takedown in his victory over Jai Herbert in June. PHOTO: MMA FIGHTING
With the addition of this bout, here is the updated line-up for the pay-per-view:
Douglas Silva de Andrade vs. Sergey Morozov
AJ Dobson vs. Jacob Malkoun
Kyler Phillips vs. Marcelo Rojo
Alexander Hernandez vs. Renato Moicano
Who do you think will make it two wins on the trot—Alexander Hernandez or Renato Moicano?
What a spectacular way to re-enter the UFC’s winner’s enclosure for Alexander ‘The Great’ Hernandez. Meeting with promotional newcomer, Mike Breedan in a short notice main card opener at UFC Vegas 38 — Hernandez dropped and stopped Breedan with a massive overhand right shot. Starting brightly early, Hernandez briefly threatened with a takedown attempt which […]
What a spectacular way to re-enter the UFC’s winner’s enclosure for Alexander ‘The Great’ Hernandez. Meeting with promotional newcomer, Mike Breedan in a short notice main card opener at UFC Vegas 38 — Hernandez dropped and stopped Breedan with a massive overhand right shot.
Starting brightly early, Hernandez briefly threatened with a takedown attempt which Breedan managed to stuff and stifle before Hernandez embarked on an onslaught of striking.
Knocking Breedan’s mouthpiece from his chops at the fence, Hernandez then exploded with an overhand right as Breedan attempted to fire back, sending him crashing back into the Octagon fence unconscious — scoring his fifth UFC victory.
Below, check out the highlights from Hernandez’s impressive knockout win over Breedan.
Thiago Moises wants Al Iaquinta or a ranked opponent after beating out Alexander Hernandez on the judge’s scorecards last Saturday. At UFC Vegas 20, the two featherweight prospects capped off the preliminaries with one of the best fights of the n…
Thiago Moises wants Al Iaquinta or a ranked opponent after beating out Alexander Hernandez on the judge’s scorecards last Saturday. At UFC Vegas 20, the two featherweight prospects capped off the preliminaries with one of the best fights of the night. While a lot of the action was back and forth initially, it seemed Thiago […]
To fans of MMA, one of the fights that stood out beforehand on UFC Vegas 20 was the featured prelim between Alexander Hernandez and Thiago Moises. In hindsight, it was one of the more memorable fights on a relatively lacklustre card. The fight was a back and forth display of striking prowess from both fighters. […]
To fans of MMA, one of the fights that stood out beforehand on UFC Vegas 20 was the featured prelim between Alexander Hernandez and Thiago Moises. In hindsight, it was one of the more memorable fights on a relatively lacklustre card.
The fight was a back and forth display of striking prowess from both fighters. It was Moises who took the unanimous decision, much to the shock of Hernandez.
Hernandez has since taken to social media to give fans some insight into the reasoning behind his reaction. He posted a picture on his Instagram account, which had the following caption:
“Silence the commentary, watch this fight, and convince me I didn’t win 2 1/2 of 3 rounds. It’s extremely difficult to rationalize and agree with the outcome, but it is the outcome. Three more fights to come this year. Onward.”
As Hernandez states, regardless of ones thought’s on the decision, the outcome is the outcome. Hernandez must move on from the disappointing loss. He does add that he wishes to fight three more times this coming year, which could very well see him claw a path back into the rankings. His previous fight against Chris Gruetzemacher showcased the potetnial that Hernandez does have. A consistent run at 155lbs could well change Hernandez from prospect to contender.
Do you agree with Hernandez about the Judges scoring? Let us know in the comments.
What a spectacular way to re-enter the UFC’s winner’s enclosure for Alexander ‘The Great’ Hernandez. Meeting with promotional newcomer, Mike Breedan in a short notice main card opener at UFC Vegas 38 — Hernandez dropped and stopped Breedan with a massive overhand right shot. Starting brightly early, Hernandez briefly threatened with a takedown attempt which […]
To fans of MMA, one of the fights that stood out beforehand on UFC Vegas 20 was the featured prelim between Alexander Hernandez and Thiago Moises. In hindsight, it was one of the more memorable fights on a relatively lacklustre card. The fight was a back and forth display of striking prowess from both fighters. […]