Tag Archives: Brandon Moreno

Deiveson Figueiredo Defeats Brandon Moreno to Reclaim UFC Flyweight Title

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Deiveson Figueiredo has reclaimed his belt…

The 34-year-old Brazilian professional mixed martial artist (21-2-1) reclaimed the 125-pound title he lost to Brandon Moreno (19-6-2) in August by defeating his Mexican rival in a unanimous decision.

All three judges scored the flyweight title fight, which co-headlined UFC 270 inside the Honda Center, in favor of Figueiredo, 48-47.

Saturday’s result brings the rivalry to an even record of 1-1-1. The two fought to a draw in December 2020, before Moreno dominated Figueiredo in their second meeting. After losing by submission in the rematch, however, Figueiredo looked like a completely different fighter in the trilogy, as his cardio and mental preparation was obvious.

“Today is my day,” Figueiredo said. “For this moment, for Brandon, for us to give you the gift of a fight of the night, for everyone who was here. I’ve been away from my family for four months. I’m ready for a fourth fight against Brandon in Mexico.”

According to UFC Stats, Moreno outlanded Figueiredo 106-95 in total strikes. But Figueiredo landed several devastating strikes, including a heavy right hand that knocked Moreno down, badly hurting him, at the end of the third round.

“I feel like I threw the better combinations with more speed, maybe he connected a little bit more power,” Moreno said. “Obviously, I thought I won, but it is what it is right now. I feel I was putting better pace on the fight. I don’t know. I need to watch the fight again and see what happened.”

The trilogy bout saw the best of both men. Moreno’s boxing and footwork were on display all night. He had great success with his left hook at the end of exchanges and was hard to track down in wrestling scrambles. Figueiredo answered with heavy low leg kicks that knocked Moreno off balance and powerful right hands.

Figueiredo left his native Brazil ahead of Saturday’s fight to train with former flyweight and bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo in Arizona, and his adjustments clearly paid off. His patience was better, and his weight cut during fight week was noticeably improved from August.

 

Moreno’s popularity exploded after he won the belt. Saturday’s crowd was heavily in his favor and played a big role in the UFC setting a new gate record at the Honda Center.

 

The loss was Moreno’s first since May 2018.

Jorge Masvidal to Fight Leon Edwards at UFC 269 in December

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Jorge Masvidal is preparing for a grudge match…

One of the most infamous backstage scuffles in UFC history will be revisited in December, when the 36-year-old Cuban and Peruvian American mixed martial artist and fellow UFC welterweight Leon Edwards have agreed to meet inside the Octagon.

Jorge Masvidal

Edwards and Masvidal will square off at UFC 269 on December 11, UFC chief business officer Hunter Campbell told ESPN. Contracts have not yet been signed, but bout agreements have been sent to both parties.

This fight has held personal implications since March 2019, when Edwards and Masvidal were involved in a backstage incident at a UFC Fight Night event in London. Masvidal struck Edwards in the face after Edwards interrupted him during a postfight interview.

Later in the night, Masvidal would infamously describe the punches he landed on Edwards as a “three-piece and soda.”

Masvidal wrote in a tweet Monday: “You’re welcome #supernecessary”

In addition to settling a long-standing grudge, the matchup will have major implications on the welterweight division. Edwards (19-3) is riding a nine-fight win streak and is a strong candidate for a title shot in 2022. Masvidal (35-15) is coming off back-to-back failed title bids against Kamaru Usman in 2020 and 2021 but has said his goal is still to claim the UFC championship.

“Despite earning the next title shot, [Edwards] has always been willing to fight Jorge first, provided the terms were correct,” Edwards’ manager, Tim Simpson, told ESPN. “We are very happy with the deal, and excited to compete in December, and then for a world title thereafter.”

As a result of the UFC adding this high-profile bout to the card, a trilogy flyweight title fight between Brandon Moreno and Deiveson Figueiredo has been moved to UFC 270 on January 22, according to the UFC.

UFC 270 on January 22 does not have an official location yet, but sources told ESPN the promotion is looking at Anaheim, which is only about 100 miles north of Moreno’s hometown of Tijuana, Mexico.

Brandon Moreno Submits Deiveson Figueiredo to Become UFC Flyweight Champion

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Brandon Moreno has gone and done it…

The 27-year-old Mexican professional mixed martial artist pulled off an upset win against Deiveson Figueiredo in dominant fashion at UFC 263 at Gila River Arena to become the UFC flyweight champion.

Brandon Moreno, Deiveson Figueiredo

Moreno submitted Figueiredo (20-2-1) via rear-naked choke at 2:26 of the third round.

Known as one of the most dangerous finishers in MMA, Figueiredo looked lost against Moreno, who was actually cut by UFC less than three years ago.

In winning, Moreno (19-5-2) became the first Mexican-born champion in UFC history.

“I can’t even believe it,” he said. “This is a real dream come true. I worked so hard for this belt. I have 10 years as a professional, 15 years training every single day. … This moment is so special. Not just for me, but for all my people, for my country, for my family, for my team … for everybody.”

Moreno looked on point from the moment the fight started. He calmly walked Figueiredo down with the jab and countered effectively when Figueiredo chose to throw his big shots. He dropped Figueiredo with a left hand in the opening round and had him badly hurt, but the Brazilian survived and made it to the next frame.

Figueiredo looked to switch things up and wrestle with Moreno in the second and third rounds, but Moreno was more than prepared. He countered with effective grappling and simply showed more hustle in certain moments. He won the majority of the scrambles and escaped any poor positions Figueiredo managed to get him in.

According to UFC Stats, Moreno out-landed Figueiredo in total strikes 47-24. He also scored two takedowns to Figueiredo’s one and racked up 4:49 of control time compared with 1:30 for Figueiredo.

“I have so much respect for Deiveson,” Moreno said. “Obviously, he tried to make it something special, to put more eyes in the fight, pushed me in the press conference, but actually, when he pushed me, I knew I won the fight. I won the fight there. My confidence was very high and he looked different. He didn’t want to look me in the eyes, he put his sunglasses on, he just looked different.”

It’s an amazing story of perseverance for Moreno, who was cut by the promotion in 2018 when the flyweight division as a whole was in jeopardy. Just last year, Moreno was skipped in line for a title shot by former bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt, although Garbrandt was eventually pulled from that contest. He is 3-0-2 in his past five fights as a betting underdog.

Just 27, Moreno is still entering the prime of his career. For Figueiredo, it’s the first time he has been finished in his pro career and his first loss overall since 2019.

“I’m enjoying this moment because you never know what happens tomorrow, you never know what happens next month,” Moreno said.

UFC Flyweight Champion Deiveson Figueiredo to Face Brandon Moreno in Highly Anticipated Rematch

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Deiveson Figueiredo is getting a rematch…

The 33-year-old Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and reigning UFC flyweight champion will fight Brandon Moreno once again on June 12, according to ESPN.

Deiveson Figueiredo

A location for the event, which is expected to be UFC 263, isn’t set yet.

In December, Figueiredo (20-1-1) and Moreno (18-5-2) fought to an exhilarating draw that was considered one of the best bouts of 2020.

The fight capped off a memorable year for Figueiredo, the UFC’s flyweight champion, who went 3-0-1 last year and was considered the consensus male fighter of the year. He won the flyweight title in July when he defeated Joseph Benavidez.

 

Both Figueiredo and Moreno are unbeaten in their past six fights.

Deiveson Figueiredo Easily Defends UFC Flyweight Title Against Alex Perez

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Deiveson Figueiredo has easily retained his title…

The 32-year-old Brazilian professional mixed martial artist finished Alex Perez via guillotine choke at 1 minute, 57 seconds of the first round on Saturday night to retain the UFC flyweight title in the main event of UFC 255 in Las Vegas.

Deiveson Figueiredo

The incredibly fast, explosive Figueiredo found Perez’s neck in a scramble, locked in the choke and squeezed until Perez tapped out. It was Figueiredo’s first title defense.

“I came to the flyweight division to knock out, to submit everybody,” Figueiredo said. “To bring back the excitement, show the world the power of the flyweight division. I always thought I was gonna save this weight class, because people don’t know my power.”

Figueiredo, nicknamed “God of War,” and his dynamic, all-action style has reinvigorated the 125-pound weight class.

“If you don’t like this guy, stop watching fights,” UFC president Dana White said. “You need to find a new hobby if you don’t like watching him.

“Obviously I’m glad we didn’t [get rid of flyweight]. The division needed a little bit of rebuilding. We rebuilt it, and this is the result.”

White said at the postfight news conference that Figueiredo won’t return to Brazil after this fight and will instead stay in Las Vegas to defend his title again in December.

The plan, White said, is to have Figueiredo fight top contender Brandon Moreno, who beat Brandon Royval in the UFC 255 prelims.

Sources confirmed to ESPN that Figueiredo and Moreno had verbally agreed to fight at UFC 256 on December 12.

Figueiredo asked for Moreno in his postfight interview.

“Dana, make this happen,” Figueiredo said. “That’s the fight that I want to happen.”

Going in, ESPN had Figueiredo ranked No. 2 (behind Johnson) and Perez at No. 5 in the world at flyweight. ESPN also has Figueiredo ranked No. 8 in the world in its pound-for-pound rankings.