The former flyweight champion made a bold statement last night at UFC Edmonton as he put on a masterful performance en route to a unanimous decision win over a tough foe in Amir Albazi.
Whilst Brandon Moreno would refuse to call out any of the top flyweight contenders around him in the rankings, ‘The Assassin Baby’ did open up about his place in the division as well as what could be next for the Mexican superstar.
Brandon Moreno says he needs ‘one more’ win before getting another title shot
Brandon Moreno bounced back from consecutive losses with a fabulous shut-out win over Amir Albazi in the main event of the UFC Fight Night Edmonton card last night; with the judges’ scorecards reading 50-45, 50-45, and 49-46 all in favor of the former champ.
“Man, I want to eat – I want to eat a lot,” a delighted, yet famished, Moreno told Daniel Cormier in the octagon with the Mexican fav-favorite keen to make a point to the rest of the division.
“I want to be on top again, I want my title back and this was just a reminder for the rest of the division – I never said nothing, I’m always very respectful of everybody but put someone here and I’ll be the baddest f***** person on the planet!”
Speaking on the ESPN MMA post-show, Moreno later admitted that despite earning the victory over the #3 ranked Albazi, he will probably still need to win one more fight before he gets another title shot.
“I mean, I have to be honest with myself, I think I need one more [win] – I don’t know what the UFC will decide in the future – but I think I have to fight one more before the title.
“I don’t know who, [Brandon] Royval is there, Kai Kara-France is a kind of boring fight because I’ve fought against him before but he’s there too – that’s it, I’ll be ready [for whoever].”
Alexandre Pantoja is set to defend his flyweight title in just a few weeks’ time against promotional debutant Kai Asakura at UFC 310; and whilst he didn’t offer a prediction for that fight, Moreno is hopeful to get that rematch with ‘The Cannibal’ in 2025.
“I don’t care [who], at the end I just want the title back but if you give me the option, I want to get that victory against Pantoja… I think I can do it; I was missing a few things in my last fight… But little differences to fix and I can get that victory.”
When asked about a potential timeline for his next fight, which could be title eliminator, Moreno would simply note that he’s looking forward to spending the festive period with his family.
“It’s crazy, the last two years that I’ve been fighting always in January and February so right now, I just want to enjoy a little bit of Christmas with my daughters and then I’ll be 100% ready for the next one.”
Fighters react to Brandon Moreno’s masterclass at UFC Edmonton
Across the MMA world, fans and fellow fighters were delighted to see Moreno back in the win column, even more so that he’s back in the green with one of the best performances of his entire career.
Brandon Moreno is expected to stay in the #2 spot come Tuesday’s ranking update and is now 22-8-2 following his win at UFC Edmonton.