UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno endured some fairly brutal treatment at the hands of Brazilian fans on his way to the Octagon at UFC 283. Moreno faced Deiveson Figueiredo for the fourth time on Saturday night, competing for the flyweight title, and fighting a Brazilian in Brazil meant hostility from the local fans. Moreno, far from being insulted, told The MMA Hour that he found the entire ordeal “funny”.
“For me, as a Mexican, it’s kind of normal. I’m not saying it’s correct. I think it’s a horrible thing, but I can see it in soccer, I can see it in lucha libre. I’m not saying it’s correct, but I live a little bit more with it like that. That’s why for me it was funny. I know that can be dangerous, but I love all the staff of the UFC, because they took care of me every single moment. All the bodyguards were there taking care of me, so I love those guys.”
Moreno: Brazilian Fans Pelting Him With Trash Was “Funny”
Moreno also acknowledged that the end of the fight, which was called off due to the miserable state of Figueiredo’s eye, could have played a part in his treatment from the crowd. Moreno landed a vicious left hook to Figueiredo’s head that caught his eye, but perhaps the crowd thought they saw an eye poke.
“Maybe because they thought I poked Figueiredo’s eye. Starting from that, I don’t know. I was just happy, laughing, I danced a little bit after the fight, maybe that’s why they started to get mad. I don’t know. I don’t care. I just won. I did everything right. I was very respectful every moment, I tried to do my best to make all the Brazilian fans comfortable with me, so I’m perfect right now. I’m comfortable with that.”
Of course, the next question for “The Assassin Baby” is who he will make his first title defense against. He wants a fight in Mexico as soon as he’s ready to compete once more.
“I need to rest my mind, I need to rest my body a little bit, but at the same time, I want to be active. I want to fight maybe in June, or — everything is a rumor right now — go to Mexico City in September for [Independence Day], that sounds cool to me. I prefer to fight in June, to be honest, but let’s see what happens. If it’s for Mexico, to take a pay-per-view event in Mexico City, for sure it would be very cool.”
Do you think Brandon Moreno deserved what he got from the Brazilian fans? Let us know in the comments.
