Alex Morono’s improvisation paid huge dividends against Tim Means.
On the main card of UFC on ABC 4 at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C., a missed strike by Morono (23-8 MMA, 12-5 UFC) led to the finishing sequence against Means (32-15-1 MMA, 14-12 UFC) at 2:09 of Round 2.
Means was having success early in the fight by controlling the center of the cage and picking his shots. Meanwhile, Morono scored with strikes as he stuck and circled on the outside. This dynamic would ultimately lead to the finish, as Morono looked to time a spinning backfist.
The spinning attempt caught nothing but air as Means ducked the strike, but Morono smoothly transitioned into a guillotine choke attempt as Means looked for a takedown. Morono jumped on the choke, and the tap soon followed after sinching it up tighter.
Check out video of the finish below (via Twitter):
ALEX MORONO LOCKS IN THE GUILLOTINE 🔒 #UFCCharlotte pic.twitter.com/SaeAKI2Igi
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) May 13, 2023
With his second UFC submission, Morono bounces back into the win column after dropping his previous outing to Santiago Ponzinibbio. That result snapped a four-fight win streak for Morono, that saw him pick up wins over Donald Cerrone, David Zawada, Mickey Gall, and Matthew Semelsberger.
After the conclusion of the fight, Morono respectfully called for a bout against Bryan Barberena.
“We’ve already agreed to fight,” Morono said during his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier. “He always stands and bangs, I like to stand and bang, like the good lord intended. So, that would be a really fun fight.”
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ABC 4 results include:
- Alex Morono def. Tim Means via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 2:09
- Matt Brown def. Court McGee knockout (punch) – Round 1, 4:09
- Karl Williams def. Chase Sherman via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Douglas Silva de Andrade def. Cody Stamann via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Mandy Bohm def. Ji Yeon Kim via split decision (28-27, 27-28, 28-27) Round 3, 1:55
- Bryan Battle def. Gabe Green via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:14
- Tainara Lisboa def. Jessica-Rose Clark via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 4:20
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 4.
