The UFC is again in Mexico Metropolis this week for the primary time in a yr with one of many nation’s hottest athletes headlining a Struggle Evening card scheduled for Saturday at Enviornment CDMX.
Former two-time UFC flyweight champ Brandon Moreno is on a mission to get his title again, however to take action, he’ll must take out latest title contender Steve Erceg.
Moreno, 31, started his 2024 marketing campaign with a slender five-round break up choice loss to Brandon Royval of their Struggle Evening most important occasion 13 months in the past on the similar venue he’ll compete inside this weekend.
In reality, the 31-year-old’s two most up-to-date losses each had been through break up choice. Moreno’s second title reign at 125 kilos ended in the summertime of 2023 when he misplaced his belt through break up choice to Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 290.
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UFC on Sportsnet
Former flyweight champion Brandon Moreno fights at dwelling in opposition to Steve Erceg in the principle occasion of a UFC Struggle Evening in Mexico Metropolis. Watch the motion on Saturday, March 29, on Sportsnet 360 and Sportsnet+ with protection starting at 5 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. PT.
Moreno has since gotten again into the win column and is coming off a five-round unanimous choice over Amir Albazi in November.
Saturday would be the fourth time Moreno has fought in Mexico beneath the UFC banner. He’s presently 0-2-1 when competing at UFC occasions positioned in his dwelling nation.
This would be the Mexican capital’s seventh time internet hosting a UFC occasion since debuting there in 2014.
Within the reverse nook, Moreno’s opponent shall be motivated and trying to snap a two-fight skid of his personal.
Erceg burst onto the UFC scene in mid-2023, and by early 2024, he was 3-0 within the group. The mix of a trio of spectacular wins, together with a spotlight knockout of Matt Schnell, plus some lucky timing and circumstances inside the 125-pound division resulted within the Aussie getting a title shot in simply his fourth UFC look.
The Perth native gave the reigning champion a run for his cash over 25 minutes within the UFC 301 most important occasion final Might in Brazil. Two of three judges had that championship bout tied at two rounds apiece heading into the fifth and ultimate spherical, throughout which Erceg made a strategic error and initiated a grappling change with Pantoja, who used it as a possibility to take management positionally and win the rest of the spherical and due to this fact the struggle.
Erceg, 29, adopted up his title shot by getting completed by Kai Kara-France 3 1/2 months later within the opening spherical of the UFC 305 co-main occasion final August in his hometown.
“Astro Boy” will look to keep away from a 3rd consecutive loss and is hoping to get proper again into the title image with a win over a revered and common former champ like Moreno, who’ll have the help of the Mexican crowd.
This can mark Erceg’s sixth UFC bout and second most important occasion. Will probably be the fifth completely different nation and sixth completely different metropolis through which Erceg has fought throughout his temporary UFC tenure.
Fighters of all ages: A wide selection of athletes shall be competing on the occasion, together with each the group’s youngest and oldest fighters presently on the UFC roster. Vinc Pichel, 42, is going through 30-year-old Rafa Garcia in a light-weight bout on the preliminary card, whereas Raul Rosas Jr., who solely turned 20 this previous October, meets Vince Morales, 34, in a featured main-card bantamweight matchup.
Pichel, who has misplaced two in a row and final received a struggle in 2021, obtained his begin within the UFC following a 2012 look on The Final Fighter actuality competitors. Rosas has mentioned his objective is to beat Jon Jones’s file for being the youngest champion in UFC historical past. He initially earned his UFC contract at age 17 with a 2022 win on Dana White’s Contender Sequence.
Below-the-radar prelim bout: Whereas Rosas is as soon as once more getting the principle card remedy, the one fighter to beat him as far as a professional, Christian Rodriguez, can also be featured at UFC Mexico Metropolis, solely he was booked in a preliminary contest versus streaking Brazilian Melquizael Costa. Stylistically, this featherweight tilt is without doubt one of the higher matchups on this card. Rodriguez is coming off a strong win over the beforehand unbeaten Austin Bashi in January, whereas Costa has received three of 4 together with two consecutive submissions.
Gastelum’s ultimate go? Kevlin Gastelum has a troublesome project within the type of Joe Pyfer this weekend and if he doesn’t get his hand raised as a considerable underdog, then questions on his future may start to come up. Though he’s solely 33, the TUF 17 winner and one-time middleweight title challenger is 3-6 in his previous 9 outings and hasn’t received consecutive bouts in seven years. Gastelum is coming off a choice win over Daniel Rodriguez final summer season, however Pyfer ought to signify a harder problem though the knockout artist isn’t presently ranked within the prime 15 at 185 kilos.
Beneath is the projected bout order for UFC Mexico Metropolis:
— Brandon Moreno vs. Steve Erceg
— Manuel Torres vs. Drew Dober
— Kelvin Gastelum vs. Joe Pyfer
— Raul Rosas Jr. vs. Vince Morales
— David Martinez vs. Saimon Oliveira
— Ronaldo Rodriguez vs. Kevin Borjas
— Edgar Chairez vs. C.J. Vergara
— Jose Medina vs. Ateba Gautier
— Christian Rodriguez vs. Melquizael Costa
— Crazy Godinez vs. Julia Polastri
— Rafa Garcia vs. Vinc Pichel
— Jamall Emmers vs. Gabriel Miranda
— Austin Hubbard vs. MarQuel Mederos
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