Brandon Moreno believed he had secured a clear win at Noche UFC, only to be taken aback when one judge scored the fight in favor of his opponent. Moreno (24-10-2 MMA, 12-6-2 UFC), the former UFC flyweight champion, ended a two-fight losing streak during the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 288 in Glendale, Arizona, by narrowly defeating Joseph Morales via split decision. The judges’ scorecards showed two rounds of 30-27 for Moreno and one round of 29-28 for Morales. Moreno admitted that the decision momentarily unsettled him, as he was confident he had decisively won and feared that the judges might not see it the same way.
“I’ve had some tough experiences with decisions,” Moreno said during the UFC Fight Night 286 post-fight interview. “In Spanish, I tell myself before the decision that maybe the fight was close, and maybe I could lose. But this time I felt I finished strong and was confident in the win. Then I saw one judge gave it 29-28 to Morales and thought, ‘What the heck?’ But the other two had it 30-27, so that eased my mind. Still, it was a little nerve-racking.”
Heading into Saturday’s event, many questioned Moreno’s place among the flyweight elite, given his recent struggles of back-to-back losses and a 2-4 record in his last six fights. Despite this skepticism, Moreno isn’t overly concerned about critics or rankings. “I think that’s the analysts’ job to debate rankings and opinions,” he said. “I don’t mind. Morales is a really tough opponent—he was previously released from the UFC but came back to win ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’ He was ready for an upset, but I stayed focused and came out on top.”
This story originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Brandon Moreno surprised by split decision scoring in Noche UFC win: ‘What the fck?’*
Fan Take: This fight highlights how razor-thin judging decisions can be in MMA, reminding fans how every round counts. Moreno’s win not only revives his career but also shakes up the flyweight division, promising more exciting matchups ahead.
Source: sports.yahoo.com
