RIO DE JANEIRO – Brandon Moreno is slightly concerned with Deiveson Figueiredo making weight.
Interim flyweight champion Moreno (20-6-2 MMA, 8-3-2 UFC) will attempt to unify the belts against reigning champ Figueiredo in Saturday’s UFC 283 co-main event at Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ABC and early prelims on ESPN+.
Although Figueiredo (21-2-1 MMA, 10-2-1 UFC) only has missed weight once in February 2020 against Joseph Benavidez, which made him ineligible to win the vacant title, Moreno recalls how big Figueiredo looked when they faced off in July after he captured the interim title with a TKO of Kai Kara-France.
“I think his weight is always a question,” Moreno told reporters, including MMA Junkie on Wednesday at UFC 283 media day. “But I stopped to take care about it because at least against me, he always made weight before. So I don’t know. I’m just trying not to think about it. When I fought against Kai Kara-France, he looked huge. He was huge. But last November when I came here with (Figueiredo), he looked better. I don’t know. I’m not putting too much attention on that.”
Weighing in as a backup is former foe Alexandre Pantoja, but Moreno only is focused on fighting Figueiredo. However, if Figueiredo does happen to have a mishap on the scale, at least Moreno guarantees he’ll be competing for the title Saturday.
“For sure, I know I’m going to fight on Saturday – 100 percent,” Moreno said. “I don’t care. My goal: I’m talking about history and importance. I want to finish this with Figueiredo – finish this with Figueiredo on Saturday and then start to watch Pantoja, (Matheus) Nicolau, Manel Kape and all the other names.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 283.
