Tag: Brandon Moreno

Brandon Royval calls out flyweight champ Alexandre Pantoja in fiery post-fight interview at UFC Mexico City

Brandon RoyvalBrandon Royval wants another crack at flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja. Stepping up on short notice after Brandon Moreno’s originally…

Brandon Royval

Brandon Royval wants another crack at flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja.

Stepping up on short notice after Brandon Moreno’s originally scheduled opponent — Amir Albazi — bowed out due to a neck injury, Royval delivered a solid performance throughout their five-round headliner, earning a split-decision victory over ‘The Assassin Baby’ inside Mexico City’s Arena CDMX.

Following the contest, a fired-up Royval called out Pantoja, who was sitting cageside for the festivities.

“I’m a f*cking gangster. I’m the realest one in this flyweight division,” Royval said while speaking with Paul Felder. Everybody wants to grapple me all day. Speaking of grappling, I hear Pantoja’s in the building. Let’s run that sh*t back motherf*cker. Ain’t no motherf*cker holding me down ever again. I’m going to people’s house and I’m taking their f*cking sh*t. All day, every day. Brandon ‘Raw Dog’ motherf*ckin’ Royval in the building. Westside!”

Is anyone interested in Brandon Royval vs. Alexandre Pantoja 3?

Brandon Royval has stepped inside the Octagon with Pantoja on two separate occasions, the first coming at a Fight Night event in August 2021. Pantoja earned a submission via RNC in the second round. Two years later, they would run it back in a flyweight title tilt at UFC 296 in December. ‘The Cannibal’ once again came out on top, this time by unanimous decision.

With Royval already coming up short against Pantoja twice, a third fight between the two would be a hard sell for fight fans. But with the UFC in desperate need of a flyweight title contender not named Brandon Moreno, ‘Raw Dog’ may be the best option at hand.

Brandon Royval defies the odds, scores split decision over Brandon Moreno – UFC Mexico City Highlights

Brandon RoyvalBrandon Royval stepped into the UFC Mexico main event as a +220 underdog, but that didn’t stop him from…

Brandon Royval

Brandon Royval stepped into the UFC Mexico main event as a +220 underdog, but that didn’t stop him from delivering a show-stealing performance against former flyweight world champion Brandon Moreno.

More than three years removed from their first meeting when ‘The Assassin Baby’ scored a last-second TKO, Royval earned some redemption, outlasting Moreno in a five-round back-and-forth war inside Arena CDMX in Mexico City. ‘Raw Dog’ threw an incredible 370 significant strikes during the 25-minute affair, though he only landed a lowly 28%. Still, that was enough to outstrike Moreno in the third, fourth, and fifth rounds which ultimately sealed the victory on two of the three scorecards.

Official Result: Brandon Royval def. Brandon Moreno via split decision (48-47, 46-49, 48-47)

Following the bout, Royval called for a rematch with reigning flyweight titleholder Alexandre Pantoja, who was sitting cageside for the festivities. Royval came up short against Pantoja at UFC 296 in December, but his impressive short-notice showing against Moreno may put him right back in line for another shot at gold.

Check Out Highlights From Brandon Royval vs. Brandon Moreno at UFC Mexico:

After canceling second retirement, Henry Cejudo eyeing fights with Sean O’Malley and Brandon Moreno

Henry CejudoHe’s not f*ckin’ leaving! Despite dubbing his UFC 298 meeting with Merab Dvalishvili as an “all or nothing” situation,…

Henry Cejudo

He’s not f*ckin’ leaving!

Despite dubbing his UFC 298 meeting with Merab Dvalishvili as an “all or nothing” situation, Henry Cejudo has reversed his decision to retire for a second time. Instead, the former two-division titleholder will look to bounce back inside the Octagon and he already has a couple of big names in mind.

“There’s still that (Sean) O’Malley fight,” Cejudo said in a video on his YouTube channel. “I still don’t think O’Malley’s going to get past ‘Chito.’ We could potentially headline something like that in Phoenix.”

O’Malley is currently scheduled to defend his bantamweight title against Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera in the UFC 299 headliner on March 9. Should ‘Sugar’ retain his title against the only make to have beaten him inside the Octagon, ‘Triple C’ already has a contingency plan in place.

“There’s that fight with Brandon Moreno,” Cejudo said. “There’s that bad blood that, you know, former training partners that were somewhat best friends leading up to the breakup, to having a good, nice little Mexican showdown for all you fans” (h/t MMA Junkie).

Will Cejudo Drop Down to Flyweight for Grudge Match with Moreno?

Cejudo has called for a clash with Moreno on more than one occasion after going their separate ways, though it’s unclear if he would be willing to drop down to flyweight to meet ‘The Assassin Baby’ for a potential grudge match. The last time Cejudo competed at 125, it was for a title defense against T.J. Dillashaw in 2019.

Moreno is scheduled to headline UFC’s return to Mexico on Saturday, February 24 against familiar foe Brandon Royval in the evening’s main event while Cejudo is fresh off a unanimous decision loss to the No. 1 ranked bantamweight contender in the world.

Cejudo has now lost back-to-back bouts since returning from a three-year-long layoff. ‘Triple C’ previously stated that a loss against ‘The Machine’ would send him back into retirement, but he has since rescinded the claim.

Ranking the UFC’s Best Fights of the Year for 2023

2023 was quite a year for MMA. We watched Francis Ngannou leave the UFC, sign with the PFL, and score a blockbuster boxing match with Tyson Fury. We saw Jon…

2023 was quite a year for MMA. We watched Francis Ngannou leave the UFC, sign with the PFL, and score a blockbuster boxing match with Tyson Fury. We saw Jon…

Breaking – Brandon Moreno set to fight Amir Albazi in UFC Mexico City co-Headliner in February return

Brandon Moreno set to fight Amir Albazi at UFC Mexico City five rounds February 24Former undisputed flyweight champion, Brandon Moreno is set for his return to the Octagon, taking co-main event honors at…

Brandon Moreno set to fight Amir Albazi at UFC Mexico City five rounds February 24

Former undisputed flyweight champion, Brandon Moreno is set for his return to the Octagon, taking co-main event honors at a UFC Fight Night Mexico City event on February 24. next – taking on surging contender, Amir Albazi in a five round clash.

Moreno, a former undisputed and interim flyweight champion, has been sidelined since he dropped his undisputed title at UFC 290 back in July in the co-main event of the International Fight Week event, dropping a close split decision loss to the incumbent in the pair’s Octagon rematch.

As for Albazi, the Iraq native has captured the number three rank in the official flyweight pile, most recently turning in a split decision win over common-foe and former interim title challenger, Kai Kara-France in the main event of UFC Vegas 74 back in June, The victory came as Albazi’s fifth in the Octagon since his debut back in 2020.

Brandon Moreno takes on Amir Albazi at UFC Mexico City

ESPN Deportes reporter, Carlos Contreras Legaspi was first to report the targeted bout between Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi, before latter confirmation from Eurosport reporter, Marcel Dorff, who confirmed the bout would take place on February 24. in a Mexico City return for the UFC. 

Moreno, a former two-time undisputed flyweight champion under the banner of the UFC, first captured Octagon spoils with a stunning rear-naked choke submission win over incoming UFC Austin feature, Deiveson Figueriedo back in 2021, before dropping the title in a third fight against the Brazilian the following January.

Minting himself as the interim flyweight titleholder with a vicious body kick KO win over Kara-France in the pair’s rematch, Moreno would land a doctor’s stoppage TKO win over Figueriedo in the pair’s fourth fight in January of last year, before losing his title to Pantoja in the summer. 

17-1 as a professional, former Brave CF standout, Albazi debuted in the UFC with a rear-naked choke submission win over Malcolm Gordon, before then lodging a decision win over Zhalgas Zhumagulov in his sophomore outing.

In three consecutive victories since then, Albazi, 30, has defeated Francisco Figueriedo, Alessandro Costa, and the aforenoted, Kara-France. 

Who wins at UFC Mexico City: Brandon Moreno or Amir Albazi?

Video – Brandon Moreno takes part in ‘Lucha Libre’ wrestling event days after title loss at UFC 290

Brandon MorenoBrandon Moreno is seemingly taking the recent loss well, as evident by his recent performance in a Lucha Libre wrestling event in Tijuana, Mexico. At UFC 290, Moreno was defeated by Alexandre Pantoja via split decision and lost his UFC flyweight title. The fight was extremely close and was a brutal war that was waged […]

Brandon Moreno

Brandon Moreno is seemingly taking the recent loss well, as evident by his recent performance in a Lucha Libre wrestling event in Tijuana, Mexico.

At UFC 290, Moreno was defeated by Alexandre Pantoja via split decision and lost his UFC flyweight title. The fight was extremely close and was a brutal war that was waged within five rounds. Unfortunately for Moreno, the judges thought Pantoja edged him out and he would leave the cage no longer a UFC champion.

For Moreno, this must have been crushing. The path to the title for him was a long and arduous journey. His first title fight ended in an extremely rare draw with Deiveson Figueiredo back in 2020. Next, would come three more fights with Figueiredo and a dangerous battle with Kai Kara France. When everything was done and the dust settled, Brandon Moreno reigned supreme over the flyweight division. Just when it looked like the Mexican superstar was ready to settle in and defend his title for years to come, the Pantoja fight came along and the Brazilian fighter would end up walking away as the champion.

Yet, the future still appears bright for Brandon Moreno. It now even seems that a potential wrestling career could present itself to the fighter after he’s ready to call a quits to his journey in combat sports.

Brandon Moreno gets rowdy at Lucha Libre event in Tijuana

Crashing a Lucha Libre Triplemanía wrestling event in Tijuana, Mexico, Brandon Moreno seemingly had a ton of fun. He attacked one of the wrestlers with a brutal barrage of strikes and even mixed in some submission attempts.

This comes just a week after the brutal fight with Pantoja, where Moreno also suffered a broken hand. While the road to recovery will keep him sidelined for months, it’s nice to see the former champ enjoying himself after a tough loss and such a hard fight.

Do you think Brandon Moreno will wrestle for the WWE after his MMA career is over?