Las Vegas, Nevada – Another opponent, another trilogy for UFC flyweight Brandon Moreno, who faces Alexandre Pantoja for the third time, this one for the title, in the co-main event of Saturday night’s UFC 290 at T-Mobile Arena.
Moreno (21-6) has become a fan favorite in addition to being a flyweight champion, and with that comes opponents who like to talk and try to incite and build up a fight. Moreno doesn’t really engage in these types of conversations.
“I’m sorry if I’m not that guy who likes to talk trash on social media or try to do some drama, but at the end of the day it works for me,” Moreno told reporters including Cageside Press on Wednesday.
“People love what I do because it’s real. Its natural.”
Pantoja (25-5) has been pretty respectful for the most part in interviews and on social media. He did land a few punches on the champ, but nothing big enough that Moreno felt the need to respond.
If anything, it’s 0-2 against the challenger with one loss when they competed on The Ultimate Fighter Season 24 and the other just a few years later.
“I have nothing personal against Alexander Pantoja. Certainly that competitive part of me, knowing that he beat me twice in the past, certainly gave me a different flavor,” Moreno said.
“But at the same time, I’m just thinking about the possibility, man. The opportunity to congratulate yourself if you beat Alexander Pantoja at the T-Mobile Arena, International Fight Week, fix your legacy. Your successor. So I’m very focused on that last goal of winning my next fight.”
Moreno’s competitive side has made him almost obsessed with his training. So much so that he said he watched every interview Pantoja gave leading up to their fight.
“I don’t know how he’s handling this new fight against me because I’ve been watching, as a stalker, all his interviews and everything. I see he said no, but I can feel he’s motivated like “Hey, I know I beat him. I can do it again. I can see it in his face and in his body language,” Moreno said.
“For me, it’s just the racing part. Man, he beat you, but you have to know you’re so different.”
Moreno showed a lot of improvement after losing those fights to Pantoja, going 6-1 with two draws after the second fight with his opponent.
“I don’t like to talk too much about, ‘Oh, I’m a different fighter’ and whatever, because I don’t even have to talk about it. People can see it. A lot of fighters say, ‘Oh, I’m a different fighter, I’ve changed too much,’ but then you watch their fights and they’re (somewhat) the same,” he said.
Moreno compared his career to that of former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira, who went on an impressive streak after dropping several fights early in his UFC career.
“I always set that example. It is very similar, for example, with Charles Oliveira. When he came to the UFC, he was kind of, you know, a good fighter, win some fights, lose some fights, then get some bonuses, then lose again,” Moreno said.
“But then he started winning. And he won and he won, and everyone was like “what happened to this guy? Why does he just win?’. Then he got the title. He lost against Makhachev, but then had this incredible win against Beneil Dariush.
“I think it’s very difficult to find such examples, and I feel like such an example. I just changed. I’m just different.”
Watch the entire media spat with Brandon Moreno above. He defends his title against Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 290 on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena.