Brandon
Moreno rose to the occasion yet again.
The two-time
Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight titleholder moved
forward in his quest to reclaim the 125-pound throne with a
five-round unanimous decision over Steve Erceg
in the
UFC on ESPN 64 headliner on Saturday at CDMX Arena in Mexico
City. All three members of the cageside judiciary scored it the
same: 49-46 for Moreno (23-8-2, 11-5-2 UFC), who has posted three
straight wins since his controversial Feb. 24 loss to Brandon
Royval.
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Erceg (12-4, 3-3 UFC) excelled in spurts, especially with his
calling-card jab and sneaky front kicks to the body. However, he
could not match Moreno’s aggression. The Fortis MMA star thumped
Erceg repeatedly with overhand rights, worked his weapons to all
levels and even mixed in strategic takedowns in the fourth and
fifth rounds. While it was far from the comprehensive performance
for which Moreno has become known, it was enough to get him past
the game Aussie.
Meanwhile, Entram Gym standout Manuel
Torres disposed of Drew Dober
with punches in the first round of their lightweight co-main event.
Dober (27-15, 13-11 UFC) checked out 1:45 into Round 1, suffering
his third setback in as many outings.
Torres (16-3, 4-1 UFC) tested the waters with a front kick to the
body and a partially blocked head kick. He zapped and dazed Dober
with a clean one-two, then made him pay for clinging too long to an
attempted single-leg. Torres battered the Elevation Fight Team
veteran with no fewer than 15 unanswered hammerfists to the side of
the head before referee Mike Beltran decided to wave it off.
The 30-year-old Torres has won seven of his past eight bouts.
Further down the main card, Edgar
Chairez rebounded from a Sept. 14 to Joshua Van
and dispatched former Fury Fighting Championship titleholder
C.J.
Vergara with a face crank in the first round of their featured
flyweight attraction.
Vergara (12-7-1, 3-5 UFC) bowed out 2:30 into Round
1.
Chairez (12-6, 2-2 UFC) set the tone with a probing jab, then
flexed his might. He sat down Vergara with a wicked counter left
hook, stalked him to the fence and cut loose with follow-up
punches. Chairez then maneuvered behind the Pete Spratt
protégé, snaked his long arms in place and let his considerable
squeeze do the rest. It was a vise from which there was no
escape.
Vergara, 33, now finds himself on a three-fight losing streak.
Elsewhere, Dana White’s Contender Series graduate Raul Rosas
Jr. outgrappled Vince
Morales to a unanimous decision in a three-round bantamweight
feature. Rosas Jr. (11-1, 5-1) swept the scorecards with matching
29-28 marks from the cageside judges.
Morales (16-10, 3-8 UFC) had his chances, particularly in the third
round. There, he sprawled on attempted takedown and transitioned
from a Peruvian necktie to an anaconda choke to a brabo choke.
Rosas Jr. was in visible distress but managed to survive and did so
again when the scene repeated itself in the waning seconds of the
bout. Morales’ inability to finish proved costly and could not
erase the efforts his 20-year-old adversary put forth across the
first 10 minutes. Rosas Jr. outstruck the Syndicate MMA rep in a
few standup exchanges and completed multiple takedowns before
seamlessly progressing to the back, at which point he proceeded to
pile up copious amounts of control time.
Morales has lost three fights in a row.
Not to be outshined, Bonebreakers MMA prospect David
Martinez put away Saimon
Oliveira with a sensational volley of strikes in the first
round of their bantamweight attraction.
Oliveira (18-6, 0-3 UFC) succumbed to blows 4:38 into Round 1,
losing for the third time in as many appearances.
Martinez (12-1, 1-0 UFC) set the tone with blistering leg kicks and
exquisite body-head combinations. The onetime Combate Global
champion staggered Oliveira with a counter right hand, flurried
with punches and sent him crashing to the canvas with a perfectly
timed knee up the middle. A hailstorm of hammerfists followed,
prompting the stoppage.
The 26-year-old Martinez has rattled off eight consecutive
victories.
Finally, ex-Inka Fighting Championship titleholder Kevin
Borjas rode slick boxing skills to a unanimous decision over
they hyperaggressive Ronaldo
Rodriguez in a three-round flyweight appetizer. All three
cageside judges scored it for Borjas (10-3, 1-2 UFC): 30-27, 30-27
and 29-28.
Rodriguez (17-3, 2-1 UFC), who missed weight for the match by one
pound, spent the majority of his time eating punches and wasting
energy on high-risk, low-reward offense. Borjas floored him twice
with crisp right hands in the first round, seized the reins from
there and never relinquished control. He called upon an efficient
and effective counter game, lured his opponent into traps and
seemed unshakable in the face of constant pressure. Rodriguez
scored with leg kicks throughout but too often relied upon an
untenable one-strike-at-a-time approach.
The loss snapped Rodriguez’s seven-fight winning streak.
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