Brandon Moreno’s Next Fight Seemingly Confirmed After Backstage Altercation at UFC 283

The UFC now has a new flyweight champion. At UFC 283, Brandon Moreno put an exciting conclusion to his fabled rivalry with Deiveson Figueiredo and won the gleaming belt to go with it, just the way he promised. In the third round, ‘The Assassin Baby’ capitalized on one particularly damaging blow delivered that severely wounded the Brazilian’s eye. As the referee then signaled for a doctor stoppage, the blow effectively gave the Mexican fighter the win. Despite getting the last laugh, Moreno still had to deal with some turmoil behind the scenes during his big moment. Initially, while returning from the arena, he was doused in food and alcohol by Brazilian fans. After that, he got into a confrontation backstage with his former opponent, Alexandre Pantoja.

But it appears that the UFC is approaching this altercation differently. The UFC representative responded to the altercation by giving out an ostensibly intriguing indication of what might come next.

Is ‘this’ the next fight for Brandon Moreno?

During the post-fight press conference, David Shaw addressed the media and reflected on UFC 283 and what comes next. During the session, a reporter asked the UFC representative about the backstage altercation between Brandon Moreno and Alexandre Pantoja. And in his reply, Shaw hinted that the altercation might someday bear some significance.

David Shaw said, “I didn’t see that, but that might set something up nicely.”Given that Moreno and Pantoja have already faced off twice before, this could be a tease for a potential trilogy following the former’s stunning victory over the ‘God of War’ at UFC 283.

Read more: UFC 283: Deiveson Figueiredo’s Coach Henry Cejudo Publically Berated for Crying Foul at Herb Dean After He Awards Brandon Moreno the Flyweight Strap

Having said that, Shaw denied his awareness of the altercation. But the flyweight champion himself did talk about it in his post-fight interview and painted quite an interesting picture of what occurred.

A pleasant encounter degenerated into a nasty dispute

According to Brandon Moreno, his altercation with Alexandre Pantoja didn’t start off with all the heat. The 29-year-old said that ‘The Cannibal’ entered the room warmly and initially offered him congratulations. However, he quickly adopted a more aggressive demeanor and pestered the Mexican by repeatedly asking him when he would be fighting again, making it clear that he wanted to be his next opponent.

But Moreno emphasized that right now is the time that he wants to fully appreciate and cherish. In addition, he claimed that now that he has the belt, Pantoja is itching to fight him.

Moreno stated, “Right now, he’s (Alexandre Pantoja) very excited and he’s a little bit desperate to get the fight for the title. Because with all this rivalry with Deiveson Figueiredo, we started in 2020 and we finished in 2023. It’s crazy, I understand the other challengers.”

‘The Assassin Baby’ is definitely riding high on his latest success against the ‘God of War’. And with the UFC subtly suggesting this altercation to be setting up something ‘nicely’, it shouldn’t come as a surprise if we hear an announcement for Moreno vs. Pantoja 3 soon.

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