While he’s not about to trash talk, Brandon Moreno sees a fight with Jussier Formiga as a possibility following a big win at UFC 245.
Las Vegas, NV — Now two fights into his second stint with the UFC, Brandon Moreno (16–5–1) is sitting pretty. A draw in his return fight with Askar Askarov marked his first fight back. Saturday at UFC 245, Moreno put on an even better showing, in an enthusiastic scrap with Kai Kara-France.
Add that to the fact that Moreno won the LFA flyweight championship during his time away from the octagon, and he could be in for another big fight next.
He wants a little time off first though. “The next for me right now is to go to Tijuana, I need a lot of tamales,” Moreno joked after the win, speaking to media outlets including Cageside Press. “But I understand, 2020 will be a hard, crazy year. I know that. Right now I’m the number 5 in the flyweight rankings in the UFC.”
Opponents in the flyweight division are in somewhat of a short supply. However, Moreno did have one name as a possibility moving forward. “I know the next fight will be really hard. I don’t know. I know [Jussier] Formiga is free, he don’t have a [opponent] in future. So maybe Formiga.”
The Brazilian is coming off a loss to Joseph Benavidez in June, but remains ranked second in the 125lb division. Still, there aren’t many other alternatives. Moreno noted that “I lost two times to [Alexandre] Pantoja, who’s fighting Matt Schnell next week.” Those two losses make a third fight unlikely. As matchmaking goes, Formiga might be the best option.
In any case, it’s nothing personal for Moreno. “To be honest, I’m not the fighter to say ‘I want to fight with you, because I hate you!’ No. Never. But I know the next year will be really, really interesting for me.”
As far as opponent Kai Kara-France, Moreno described him as “a nice, amazing prospect in this division.” One he shares some similarities with. “In comparison with Kai, I was in the same spot as him like one year and a half before. Two wins in a row, UFC loved me a lot. I had experience. I think tonight was that — I had experience in that moment.”
Staying positive, he added “I think everybody in the UFC, not just the flyweight division, has a lot of good skills, are amazing guys, amazing athletes. But I fight really really hard for my life.” For his family, team, and coaches, he added. “I need to go forward, just go forward.”
Watch the full UFC 245 post-fight press scrum with Brandon Moreno above!
