Tag: Renato Moicano

Renato Moicano gives honest assessment of Paddy Pimblett: ‘I can beat this motherf*cker’

Not only does Renato Moicano believe he would beat Paddy Pimblett, he says he’d finish him in the first round.

[autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] thinks he would make quick work of [autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag] in a potential UFC fight.

Moicano (18-5-1 MMA, 10-5 UFC) baited Pimblett (21-3 MMA, 5-0 UFC) into calling him out after he suggested that Drew Dober, whom he beat by unanimous decision Saturday at UFC Fight Night 235, should fight him next.

Pimblett responded by suggesting that they fight, and Moicano is all in.

Moicano said he is willing to fight Pimblett in the UFC’s rumored return to England in summer, but he won’t chase him.

“I can beat this motherf*cker in June, but I’m not waiting too much,” Moicano said on the “Believe You Me” podcast with Michael Bisping. “I’m 34 years old. I have to go and if you want that smoke just send me the contract, Paddy Pimblett. Easy money. I’m going to make you easy money, my brother, finish on the first round.”

Moicano wasn’t entirely critical of Pimblett’s skillset but said he sees several holes he can expose.

“He’s trying to make himself a name in UFC right, and I think he could be a good fighter,” Moicano said. “I remember his fight against Luigi Vendramini, and I know Luigi Vendramini is tough, and he was losing and then he beat (Vendramini), so I think he has a good chin. Every time that I talk sh*t about the fight is because I want to get the fight, but I will be honest with you: I think he can take a punch.

“I think his chin is good, but I do think that he lacks some defense in the striking, especially when he’s walking forward like his chin is up high. I think his wrestling is not top notch, I think he has a good jiu-jitsu, but only jiu-jitsu is not going to get you to the rankings. You have to have good striking and solid wrestling and good cardio, and as far as I am concerned, his cardio is not the greatest. So, I see a lot of holes.”

Moicano sees potential in Pimblett but only after he’s done with him.

“With his popularity and how UFC likes him, I think he can do it,” Moicano said. “The only problem is he’s going to be a better fighter after I finish him in the first round.”

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Drew Dober opens up on UFC Fight Night 235 loss to Renato Moicano: ‘In a game of inches, I made mistakes’

Perhaps one bad decision cost Drew Dober the fight against Renato Moicano at UFC Fight Night 235.

Perhaps one bad decision cost [autotag]Drew Dober[/autotag] the fight against [autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] at UFC Fight Night 235.

Dober (27-12 MMA, 13-8 UFC) lost a unanimous decision to Moicano (18-5-1 MMA, 10-5 UFC) in Saturday’s co-main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Dober was having success on the feet, but struggled to fend off Moicano’s grappling. With each fighter winning a round heading into Round 3, Dober tried to reverse a Moicano takedown but wound up on his back for the remaining two minutes and a half of the fight. Dober took to Instagram to react to the loss.

“Not the outcome we wanted. In a game of inches, I made mistakes, and @renato_moicano_ufc was the better man tonight. Congratulations to him and his team. I feel no shame in putting everything on the line and testing my abilities against the best in the world.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/C26OkimL_82/

Moicano responded to Dober’s post by paying him respect, and even suggesting who he should fight next.

“Im a huge fan…. On every interview I was saying that you are dangerous!!!
I want to see you fighting Paddy Pimblett next… huge respect for you thank you for the fight.”

Dober, 35, has now lost two of his past three. Prior to his setback against Moicano, Dober earned a Performance of the Night bonus when he finished Ricky Glenn by first-round TKO this past October.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.

UFC Fight Night 235 post-event facts: Randy Brown is on the rise

Check out all the facts from UFC Fight Night 235, which saw Randy Brown continue his run of success in the loaded welterweight division.

The UFC opened its four-event February schedule Saturday with UFC Fight Night 235, which took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

[autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] (13-4 MMA, 5-2 UFC) achieved his first octagon main event win to close out the card when he outworked [autotag]Roman Dolidze[/autotag] (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) to a majority decision in their matchup of ranked UFC middleweights.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 235.

UFC Fight Night 235 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Drew Dober’s $21,000 tops card

UFC Fight Night 235 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 235 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $170,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC Fight Night 235 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 235 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Roman Dolidze[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Drew Dober[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Randy Brown[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Muslim Salikhov[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Natalia Silva[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Viviane Araujo[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Aliaskhab Khizriev[/autotag]: $4,000
vs. [autotag]Makhmud Muradov[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Charlie Radtke[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Gilbert Urbina[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Molly McCann[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Diana Belbita[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Charles Johnson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Azat Maksum[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Themba Gorimbo[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Pete Rodriguez[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jeong Yeong Lee[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Blake Bilder[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Luana Carolina[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Julija Stoliarenko[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Marquel Mederos[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Landon Quinones[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Jamal Pogues[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Thomas Petersen[/autotag]: $4,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2351 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $615,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $23,322,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.

UFC Fight Night 235 results: Renato Moicano cuts wild promo after blood-soaked win over Drew Dober

Renato Moicano defeated Drew Dober and then revealed to the world his 62-year-old father just had another baby.

[autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] was drenched in his own blood at UFC Fight Night 235, but walked away victorious.

In the co-main event Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Moicano (18-5-1 MMA, 10-5 UFC) defeated [autotag]Drew Dober[/autotag] (27-12 MMA, 13-8 UFC) by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).

The win was earned on the mat as Moicano showed off strong grappling abilities and overcame a nasty second-round gash near his right eye.

Dober consistently denied Moicano’s attempts to advance position, but he struggled to get up off his back as Moicano remained in half guard for much of the fight.

Immediately after the win, Moicano cut a highly anticipated promo on the microphone during which he revealed to the world his 62-year-old father had a baby the day before in Brazil.

The appearance was Moicano’s first since a November 2022 submission of Brad Riddell. He’s now won back-to-back fights and four of his most recent five.

The loss is Dober’s second in three fights. A win over Ricky Glenn is sandwiched between Saturday’s result and a May 2023 loss to Matt Frevola.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 235 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.

Video: ‘UFC Fight Night 235: Dolidze vs. Imavov’ media day interviews

Before UFC Fight Night 235 on Saturday, watch as the main card athletes fighters speak to reporters at media day.

LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night 235, which takes place at the UFC Apex with a card that streams entirely on ESPN+, goes down Saturday.

Before fight night arrives, though, notable athletes from the main card spoke to reporters Wednesday at media day.

If you happened to miss any of the individual sessions on the live stream, check below for the archived videos of each media day.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.

Renato Moicano says he’s superior striker to KO king Drew Dober entering UFC Fight Night 235

Renato Moicano is not afraid to strike with Drew Dober, who has the most knockout wins in lightweight history, at UFC Fight Night 235.

LAS VEGAS – The UFC Fight Night 235 co-main event between [autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] and Drew Dober might look like a striker vs. grappler matchup on paper, but at least one side doesn’t consider it as such.

Despite Dober (27-12 MMA, 13-8 UFC) entering Saturday’s lightweight bout at the UFC Apex (ESPN+) with the most knockout victories in UFC lightweight history, Moicano (17-5-1 MMA, 9-5 UFC) thinks he has the advantage on the feet, on top of an even more clear gap in grappling skill.

“I’m not taking it easy on him – I don’t think he’s an easy fight,” Moicano told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s UFC Fight Night 235 media day. “But I think I’m better than him. I think I’m more well-rounded. I think I can strike with him on the feet. Probably he has more power than me on the hands, right? Knockout artist. But at the end of the day, I think I’m even better than him on the striking. No disrespect to him, but I will beat him on Saturday.”

Moicano, 34, has won three of his past four fights, but he hasn’t competed since a first-round submission of Brad Riddell at UFC 281 in November 2022 due to injury. He considers himself as a formidable task for anyone at 155 pounds, however, he wants to get past this career-long layoff before making any bold claims about the future.

“It really depends how I finish the fight, how the fight goes, what happens, who is interviewing, who is on the mic,” Moicano said. “I have to wait because I don’t have anything planned (for the future).”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.

UFC Fight Night 235 pre-event facts: Drew Dober looks to build on lightweight KO record

The best facts about UFC Fight Night 235, which features the return of Drew Dober, who has the most KO wins in lightweight history.

The UFC kicks off its February schedule Saturday with UFC Fight Night 235, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+.

A pair of middleweights looking to take a big next step in the rapidly-evolving division meet in the main event. [autotag]Roman Dolidze[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) and [autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] (12-4 MMA, 4-2 UFC) will battle in a five-round bout that will see both sides look to claim their first headlining win inside the octagon.

For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts for UFC Fight Night 235.

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Renato Moicano knows post-fight promo could land differently at UFC Apex: ‘Nobody gives a sh*t about Fight Nights’

“This is a Fight Night. Nobody gives a sh*t about Fight Nights,” UFC lightweight contender Renato Moicano explains of his next bout.

[autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] understands why there are so many shows at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, but that doesn’t make him any more excited to fight there.

For his first few UFC fights, Moicano (17-5-1 MMA, 9-5 UFC) used Portuguese-language interpreters for his interviews. But when a microphone was put in front of his face at UFC 271 in February 2022 after his win over Alexander Hernandez, magic happened in the form an expletive-filled rant.

A similar occurence repeated at UFC 281 in November 2022, his most recent outing, when he defeated Brad Riddell. His speech left Joe Rogan, like many viewers around the world, laughing.

Moicano nailed both of those moments and parlayed the attention that came with it. He launched the Money Moicano YouTube channel, which has gained over 21,000 subscribers to date. Moicano explained that his quick-witted, humorous takes on situations around the world is organic and not pre-planned, in the same way his in-cage interviews are off-the-cuff.

“I don’t think about it at all,” Moicano recently told MMA Junkie. “After the fight, I usually get so emotional because people who don’t fight cannot understand how hard it is to go through the training camp and the dieting and all that stuff. So when you go over there and everything went well and you have a great performance, (it’s hard to explain) how happy you are.

“Definitely my best days are after I win. When you win, you feel like you’re on top of the world. I don’t actually plan nothing. I just speak my mind, and it happens like in my last fight when I was thinking a lot about money. That’s why I was talking a lot about money. Moicano wants money. But that was not something I planned. I just speak my mind.”

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Known for his post-fight promos on the microphone, Moicano admits things could land a little bit differently with intimate audience rather than a full arena should he beat [autotag]Drew Dober[/autotag] (27-12 MMA, 13-8 UFC) on Feb. 3 at UFC Fight Night 235.

“This is a Fight Night. Nobody gives a sh*t about Fight Nights,” Moicano said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re the co-main event, main event, or the prelims. Who gives a f*ck? It’s just a sh*tty way to put UFC on ESPN. So hey, Dana White, I’d rather be on UFC 299. But I don’t make the rules. I’m an employee. Feb. 3, I will beat Drew Dober. It doesn’t matter if it’s in the Apex. Nobody likes the Apex, my brother. You can ask anybody. The fans hate the Apex. The fighters, I’m pretty sure they don’t like the Apex, too.”

“… “I know the UFC has so many fighters right now and have to make so many fights. It makes sense for the Apex and ESPN. If you’re asking me if I’m happy to fight at the Apex, no way, brother. No way. Imagine UFC 299 in Miami, a lot of people, you have a great performance and then you can talk in a mic with a great guy like Joe Rogan or even Michael Bisping, DC, and you can express yourself.”

Whether there are 100 people or 10,000 people on-hand to watch his fights, Moicano said the most important thing is handling business. With money on the mind, Moicano expects victory Feb. 3 in Las Vegas.

“The Apex is going to be different, but Moicano is business,” Moicano said. “I’m going over there with the business mind. I have to beat Drew Dober, get my double checks and look forward at who is available and make statements. Like it or not, I’m fighting at the Apex on Feb. 3. With a crowd, without a crowd, I have to make money. Feb. 3, I will make that money.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 235.

Renato Moicano appalled by Paddy Pimblett’s weight gain between UFC fights: ‘Look how fat he is’

Renato Moicano thinks Paddy Pimblett is hurting his UFC career by drastic weight gains.

[autotag]Renato Moicano[/autotag] is appalled by how quickly and how much weight [autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag] can put on in between fights.

The UFC lightweight contender thinks Pimblett’s weight management habits will be detrimental to his fighting career. Pimblett has been criticized by fans, fighters and pundits about his weight gain after his fights. Moicano was shocked to see a recent picture of Pimblett just three weeks after his win over Tony Ferguson at UFC 296.

“Somebody sent me this picture of this motherf*cker, Paddy Pimblett. Look how fat he is,” Moicano said on his YouTube channel. “I cannot believe how big he gets between fights. I’m not even joking. He fought Dec. 16, so less than three weeks my brother, and now he’s looking like an old retired fighter, my brother.

“It’s not only that time, it’s every time we see Paddy Pimblett. We see he fights, and he just becomes obese after the fights, and I think that’s going to be very detrimental for his career.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/C1kxiq7OWfm/?img_index=1

Pimblett, who like Moicano competes at 155 pounds, has shared before that he can get up to 200 pounds in between fights. Moicano thinks Pimblett’s weight can be affecting his cardio.

“If you’re training at 190, 185, too big in your training camp – remember, on fight day you can’t recover that much, and some people gas out,” Moicano said. “They’re so worried about the weight, you’re training so much, and you’re not thinking about fighting, you’re just thinking about weight loss.”

All in all, Moicano advises Pimblett to get stricter about his diet. He thinks Pimblett is not only jeopardizing his career, but also his life whenever he decides to retire.

“You have to be in shape, otherwise, you’re messing with your whole system,” Moicano said. “You should take care of your healthy brother. As a lightweight walking with 190, it’s not like it’s muscle, the guy is round, my brother. Look at his face. That’s never going to be a good thing, to gain that much weight and get that crazy fluctuation in weight.

“He definitely should consider joining a diet program. We have to remember that after our careers, we’re going to be regular people just living. If you’re doing that as an athlete, imagine when you stop fighting because 100 percent you’re not going to be training like you’re training today.”

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