Following his emphatic win over Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC Paris this past September, Renato Moicano called for a tantalizing war against Justin Gaethje as he plots his way to the lightweight title.
This past September at UFC Paris, Renato Moicano competed in his second main event with the promotion where he took on home-country favorite, Benoit Saint-Denis.
The Brazilian veteran showcased why he is a serious problem in the 155lb division when he scored a doctor stoppage TKO win over ‘God Of War’ putting him ever closer to the lightweight title.
Renato Moicano promises to knock out Justin Gaethje in a potential barnburner
Following the huge win, ‘Money’ Moicano called for a future fight against the former interim champion, Justin Gaethje, who is looking to return to action sooner rather than later following his devastating UFC 300 loss to Max Holloway.
Despite his four-fight win streak (six-fight win streak at 155lbs), the 35-year-old remained outside of the top 10 at lightweight but he was reassured by Dana White ‘not to worry’ as AI will soon be implemented into the UFC’s ranking system.
With that, a matchup between him and Gaethje became more possible and he has promised that if it does come to fruition, he will knock out ‘The Highlight’ and make himself undeniable as the next title contender.
“It really depends on the negotiations, the money, I have to work on a new contract now, I have to talk to the UFC about money, let’s talk about money,” Moicano told MMAFighting.
“I would fight anybody above me in the rankings, Justin Gaethje, anybody, I don’t care, I want to keep fighting because I’m 35, it’s time to go, I need one more win and then a title shot. Depending on the opponent and how it goes there definitely could be a title shot next.
“I can wait to fight Justin Gaethje in March 100%, I see no problems… I would beat Justin Gaethje, I don’t care… He could be the badest guy on the planet, I’m not losing, and if they send me the contract I will knock him the f*ck out, I’m telling you… Ground-and-pound, standup, I don’t care, I cannot afford to lose,” Moicano added.
Moicano doesn’t think Arman Tsarukyan is the man to beat Islam Makhachev
With Islam Makhachev still reigning over the lightweight division, his next defense will likely come against Arman Tsarukyan in the beginning quarter of next year.
With the two having already fought before with Makhachev holding a win over him, the Brazilian doesn’t think ‘Ahalkalakets’ is the man to dethrone the Russian champion.
“I don’t know if Arman will be the guy to beat Islam Makhachev but Renato Moicano will. I respect both guys a lot, Islam and Arman, Arman is very good and definitely he has a shot against Makhachev because he’s a great wrestler, Islam showed us he’s human in his last fight… Somebody’s coming for the gold,” Moicano stated.
The Brazilian is hoping he can fight on the same card Makhachev defends his title against Tsarukyan on, with a date still yet to be set for that inevitable bout.
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