Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) flyweight John Moraga is no stranger to adversity. The battle tested mixed martial arts (MMA) veteran has said he’s been viewed as an underdog in not just his career, but his life.
His bout with Sergio Pettis at tomorrow night’s (Jan. 15) UFC Fight Night event is no exception. Moraga will be competing in his hometown, but oddsmakers are slightly favoring Pettis.
Perhaps Moraga’s back-to-back losses to Joseph Benavidez and Matheus Nicolau have left some doubt in the minds of those oddsmakers. At a recent media scrum, Moraga said it’s all part of the fight business.
“This is the fight game. You can call it inconsistent, but this is what we do. (Those losses) happened to me. I’m not overlooking him at all. I know he’s tough, he’s well-rounded, he’s good everywhere but so am I. So let’s go.”
It’s clear that Moraga has his sights set on his upcoming bout. If he suffers his third straight defeat, he knows the possibility of receiving a pink slip from the UFC is indeed real. So much so, that he said he was “fighting for his life” against Pettis.
At the scrum, Moraga said his past has prepared him for these kind of situations.
“The pressure’s on me in a sense, but I don’t let it get to me. I feel like I actually perform best when I’m under pressure. My back’s been against the wall, even before I got to the UFC. I was never supposed to get here, and I was never supposed to stay here, so let’s do it.”
UFC’s upcoming Fight Night event takes place inside the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix. Arizona. The main event will feature a featherweight showdown between UFC Hall of Famer B.J. Penn, who is coming out of retirement, and Yair Rodriguez.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqeJIScfSbo
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) flyweight John Moraga is no stranger to adversity. The battle tested mixed martial arts (MMA) veteran has said he’s been viewed as an underdog in not just his career, but his life.
His bout with Sergio Pettis at tomorrow night’s (Jan. 15) UFC Fight Night event is no exception. Moraga will be competing in his hometown, but oddsmakers are slightly favoring Pettis.
Perhaps Moraga’s back-to-back losses to Joseph Benavidez and Matheus Nicolau have left some doubt in the minds of those oddsmakers. At a recent media scrum, Moraga said it’s all part of the fight business.
“This is the fight game. You can call it inconsistent, but this is what we do. (Those losses) happened to me. I’m not overlooking him at all. I know he’s tough, he’s well-rounded, he’s good everywhere but so am I. So let’s go.”
It’s clear that Moraga has his sights set on his upcoming bout. If he suffers his third straight defeat, he knows the possibility of receiving a pink slip from the UFC is indeed real. So much so, that he said he was “fighting for his life” against Pettis.
At the scrum, Moraga said his past has prepared him for these kind of situations.
“The pressure’s on me in a sense, but I don’t let it get to me. I feel like I actually perform best when I’m under pressure. My back’s been against the wall, even before I got to the UFC. I was never supposed to get here, and I was never supposed to stay here, so let’s do it.”
UFC’s upcoming Fight Night event takes place inside the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix. Arizona. The main event will feature a featherweight showdown between UFC Hall of Famer B.J. Penn, who is coming out of retirement, and Yair Rodriguez.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) flyweights John Moraga and Sergio Pettis nabbed a main card slot on the UFC Fight Night event this Sunday night (Jan. 15). Once Jimmie Rivera was removed from the event…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qT45h9hSsF4
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) flyweights John Moraga and Sergio Pettis nabbed a main card slot on the UFC Fight Night event this Sunday night (Jan. 15). Once Jimmie Rivera was removed from the event, it opened up the door for both 125-pounders.
Moraga has a “do or die” mentality when it comes to his upcoming bout. He recently said he was fighting for his life because he wasn’t convinced he’d want to fight anywhere else if the UFC released him. The official YouTube channel of the UFC uploaded a new video going through Moraga’s life growing up and how wrestling made him.
Here’s the official description:
“An underdog his whole life, flyweight contender John Moraga was saved by wrestling from the mean streets of Phoenix, Arizona. He makes his return to his hometown against No. 15-ranked Sergio Pettis at Fight Night Phoenix.”
Going into Sunday’s bout, Pettis is a slight favorite. It’s nothing new to Moraga, who thinks it’s business as usual.
“I’ve been an underdog my whole life since I started right here (Maryvale High School). I’ve been an underdog, so it ain’t nothing new to me.”
Moraga’s former wrestling coach Frank Saenz was also featured in the video. He played a huge role in helping Moraga thrive in more dire times. Saenz refused to take the credit.
“John made himself what he is today because he’s a believer. He believes and he believes. I think after that state tournament that he won, that kid (he faced) was ranked 12th in the nation at that time, an All-American. (Moraga) probably lost to this kid 10 times, 12 times prior and won in double overtime. (He) never quit. He excelled and did something that people didn’t think he’d be able to do.”
The UFC Fight Night prelims begin at 8 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. The main card will air on the same network at 10 p.m. ET. Moraga vs. Pettis is expected to be the main card opener.
UFC Fight Night 103 features a flyweight showdown that could decide the future for both men involved. Former title challenger John Moraga looks to get back on track against the young and talented Sergio Pettis. How do these two match up? Let’s take a deeper look into things.
UFC Fight Night 103 features a flyweight showdown that could decide the future for both men involved. Former title challenger John Moraga looks to get back on track against the young and talented Sergio Pettis. How do these two match up? Let’s take a deeper look into things.
Striking
You’d think it’d be obvious who has the striking advantage in this fight, but it’s not so simple. While Sergio Pettis may have the more striking heavy attack, John Moraga doesn’t mind mixing things up on the inside. Where Pettis tries to remain at kicking distance, darting in with jabs and getting out throwing a skip back cross similar to Conor McGregor, Moraga likes to pressure forward with his boxing. Moraga also enjoys implementing calf kicks that the MMA Lab fighters are known for. The major deficiency in Moraga’s striking is his inability to fight while going backwards. Besides a check hook, he doesn’t employ many tools while on the back foot. Moraga also throws one strike at a time which can eventually get more predictable. Pettis can strike both going forwards and back. Both men also don’t mind switching up their stances during fights, though Pettis is more comfortable with this tactic as he comes from a traditional martial arts background. Pettis has more tools at his disposal in the stand up realm, though he can be susceptible to leg kicks, the bane of every traditional martial artist’s existence. Still, Pettis has the advantage while the fight remains on the feet.
Wrestling
Sergio Pettis does have some wrestling pedigree. In fact, his wrestling is sharper than his older brother Anthony who still seems to struggles with his entries. Sergio has no such weaknesses as he times his double leg takedowns with speed, precision, and solid technique. That being said, it will likely be John Moraga who looks for the takedown early and often. Moraga has been wrestling for his whole like and will look to use those skills to his advantage. Despite that fact, Moraga tends to rely more on his boxing than his wrestling pedigree. If he’s smart, he’ll want to go back to his roots for this fight. To do so he’ll have to throw more than one strike to set things up however. If he sticks to his single striking methods then it’s likely that Pettis will be able to defend his takedowns.
Submissions
Moraga has more submissions under his belt than the young Pettis. While Sergio has certainly had his fair share of submissions during his career, it came against lesser competition, not at the highest levels of the sport. Moraga has managed to submit higher level opposition with either great time and instinct or by utilizing a smart top game until he’s able to transition into an advantageous position. If anyone is going to have a chance of securing a submission, it’s John Moraga.
The stakes are high in this match up and with Moraga flirting with retirement, you can expect both men to give it their all come Saturday night.
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
The hole left in the UFC Fight Night 103 card in Phoenix, AZ due to an injury to Bryan Caraway has been plugged. A key flyweight tilt between Sergio Pettis and John Moraga has now been promoted to the main card, the UFC confirmed today. The bout was originally scheduled to headline the Fox Sports 1 Preliminary portion of the event.
In the wake of Caraway’s injury, opponent Jimmie Rivera was offered replacement opponents John Dodson and Marlon Vera, and eventually settled on Vera. However, he apparently changed his mind on the short notice replacement, and withdrew from the event, claiming he feared looking like a bully. With Rivera, who had a huge career boost with a win over Urijah Faber at UFC 203, off the event, the UFC were down a main card fight. Enter Pettis vs. Moraga.
Pettis (14-2), the younger brother of former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis, enters the bout on a two-fight win streak, and is 5-2 in the UFC overall. He meets former title challenger Moraga (16–5) as the latter is coming off a two-fight losing skid, with decision losses to Joseph Benavidez and Matheus Nicolau.
UFC Fight Night 103: Penn vs. Rodrigeuz now breaks down as follows:
MAIN CARD (Fox Sports 1)
Yair Rodriguez vs. B.J. Penn
Marcin Held vs. Joe Lauzon
Court McGee vs. Ben Saunders
John Moraga vs. Sergio Pettis
PRELIMINARY CARD (Fox Sports 1)
Augusto Mendes vs. Frankie Saenz
Aleksei Oleinik vs. Viktor Pesta
Tony Martin vs. Alex White
Drakkar Klose vs. Devin Powell
PRELIMINARY CARD (UFC Fight Pass)
Nina Ansaroff vs. Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger
Walt Harris vs. Chase Sherman
Joachim Christensen vs. Bojan Mihajlovic
Cyril Asker vs. Dmitrii Smoliakov
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXg_9aLd5_Y
The hole left in the UFC Fight Night 103 card in Phoenix, AZ due to an injury to Bryan Caraway has been plugged. A key flyweight tilt between Sergio Pettis and John Moraga has now been promoted to the main card, the UFC confirmed today. The bout was originally scheduled to headline the Fox Sports 1 Preliminary portion of the event.
In the wake of Caraway’s injury, opponent Jimmie Rivera was offered replacement opponents John Dodson and Marlon Vera, and eventually settled on Vera. However, he apparently changed his mind on the short notice replacement, and withdrew from the event, claiming he feared looking like a bully. With Rivera, who had a huge career boost with a win over Urijah Faber at UFC 203, off the event, the UFC were down a main card fight. Enter Pettis vs. Moraga.
Pettis (14-2), the younger brother of former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis, enters the bout on a two-fight win streak, and is 5-2 in the UFC overall. He meets former title challenger Moraga (16–5) as the latter is coming off a two-fight losing skid, with decision losses to Joseph Benavidez and Matheus Nicolau.
UFC Fight Night 103: Penn vs. Rodrigeuz now breaks down as follows:
MAIN CARD (Fox Sports 1)
Yair Rodriguez vs. B.J. Penn
Marcin Held vs. Joe Lauzon
Court McGee vs. Ben Saunders
John Moraga vs. Sergio Pettis
PRELIMINARY CARD (Fox Sports 1)
Augusto Mendes vs. Frankie Saenz
Aleksei Oleinik vs. Viktor Pesta
Tony Martin vs. Alex White
Drakkar Klose vs. Devin Powell
PRELIMINARY CARD (UFC Fight Pass)
Nina Ansaroff vs. Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger
Walt Harris vs. Chase Sherman
Joachim Christensen vs. Bojan Mihajlovic
Cyril Asker vs. Dmitrii Smoliakov
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) flyweight John Moraga may be stepping inside the Octagon for the last time on Jan. 15. Doing battle with him in Phoenix will be Sergio Pettis. When Moraga throws leather with his opponent, he will be doing so in his hometown.
Moraga appeared on MMAJunkie Radio to discuss the bout. The 125-pounder was honest, to say the least, and admitted a loss could mean a pink slip from the UFC brass:
“This is real to me, I came from the streets. I did this to make a better living and provide for my kids. And I’m barely at the point where I really feel like I can get a win or a couple of wins and actually start making some money that – show myself that I made a career out of this. You know, there’s nothing left for me. If I get cut from the UFC, there ain’t nothing else really in fighting for me, so I’m fighting for my life right here. This is everything. I’m all in. I’m all in on this one.”
Moraga has a reason to take a potential release seriously. A loss next Sunday would put him on a three-fight skid. It’s easy to see other mixed martial arts (MMA) promotions welcoming Moraga if he were cut, but he doesn’t feel the money is there with other organizations.
“I don’t think anybody else is paying the money that we should be paid to go through what we go through. I don’t do this to be on posters or interviews or fame, anything like that. I’m here to provide for my family and that’s it. I don’t know what else there would be for me, so I’m going to make this happen.”
Moraga vs. Pettis will headline the FOX Sports 1 portion of the prelims.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08i3fR-0CcY
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) flyweight John Moraga may be stepping inside the Octagon for the last time on Jan. 15. Doing battle with him in Phoenix will be Sergio Pettis. When Moraga throws leather with his opponent, he will be doing so in his hometown.
Moraga appeared on MMAJunkie Radio to discuss the bout. The 125-pounder was honest, to say the least, and admitted a loss could mean a pink slip from the UFC brass:
“This is real to me, I came from the streets. I did this to make a better living and provide for my kids. And I’m barely at the point where I really feel like I can get a win or a couple of wins and actually start making some money that – show myself that I made a career out of this. You know, there’s nothing left for me. If I get cut from the UFC, there ain’t nothing else really in fighting for me, so I’m fighting for my life right here. This is everything. I’m all in. I’m all in on this one.”
Moraga has a reason to take a potential release seriously. A loss next Sunday would put him on a three-fight skid. It’s easy to see other mixed martial arts (MMA) promotions welcoming Moraga if he were cut, but he doesn’t feel the money is there with other organizations.
“I don’t think anybody else is paying the money that we should be paid to go through what we go through. I don’t do this to be on posters or interviews or fame, anything like that. I’m here to provide for my family and that’s it. I don’t know what else there would be for me, so I’m going to make this happen.”
Moraga vs. Pettis will headline the FOX Sports 1 portion of the prelims.
On Wednesday evening, UFC confirmed two changes to their upcoming return event in Phoenix, Arizona.
The following is from the official UFC.com report regarding the pair of replacement bouts that are now official for the 1/15 fight card:
“In the f…
On Wednesday evening, UFC confirmed two changes to their upcoming return event in Phoenix, Arizona.
The following is from the official UFC.com report regarding the pair of replacement bouts that are now official for the 1/15 fight card:
“In the flyweight division, it will be a new clash of contenders, as former world title challenger John Moraga replaces the injured Jussier Formiga against Milwaukee’s Sergio Pettis.
“Plus, with Jordan Rinaldi forced to withdraw from his match against Devin Powell, unbeaten Drakkar Klose has stepped in to make his Octagon debut against his fellow UFC newcomer.”
Headlined by the long-awaited Octagon return of UFC Hall Of Famer and former two-division UFC World Champion BJ Penn, who battles durable contender Yair Rodriguez in the main event, UFC Fight Night 103 takes place live from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona on January 15, 2017.
