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“Pantoja Cooked Him Real Bad”- After Winning ‘Fight of the Night’, Brandon Moreono’s Gruesome Injury in the “First Round” vs Alexandre Pantoja Has Fans Hailing the Ex-UFC Champ After UFC 290

Published 07/09/2023, 3:19 AM EDT

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The Flyweights once again thrilled the crowd at UFC 290, held tonight inside Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena. Brandon Moreno[21-7-2] and Alexandre Pantoja[26-5-0] engaged in a fierce battle, exchanging blows for a full 25 minutes. In the decision, ‘The Cannibal’ emerged with a split decision victory, with two judges scoring the fight 48-47 in his favor and another judge favoring Moreno 49-46. However, seems like yet another factor led to the defeat of ‘The Assassin Baby’ at the co-main event.

Moreno initially appeared dominant after the second round, but Pantoja staged a comeback, transforming the fight into a fierce struggle on the ground. Moreno struggled to establish himself on his feet, constantly facing threats from Pantoja in both areas. Despite Moreno’s impressive escapes, he was predominantly forced to play defense during the grappling exchanges. However, Pantoja regained control in the third round and maintained a strong performance in the final round, securing the flyweight title with a split-decision win. Moreover, this bout earned its spot for being the ‘Fight of the Night’ of the event, too, despite the decision being viewed as controversial by some.

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Having said that, UFC president Dana White has offered a startling detail on the fight, and it has got the fans in shock knowing the 29-year-old Moreno’s condition in the fight.

Fans are in shock as Dana White talks about Brandon Moreno suffering a first-round injury

After a successful event in Las Vegas, a tweet emerged with further information from Dana White regarding the co-main bout between Brandon Moreno and Alexandre Pantoja. The tweet revealed that Moreno’s hand was compromised right from the beginning of the fight.

In fact, the tweet stated, Brandon Moreno suffered a broken hand in the first round of the #UFC290 co-main event vs. Alexandre Pantoja, per Dana White.” This revelation got the fans talking and expressing their admiration for the Mexican fighter.

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Check out how the fans reacted to this update:

One fan saw Moreno’s loss as an absurdity:

While other fan weighed in by favoring Pantoja’s dominance in it:

The above tweet received a strong response from another fight fan:

Another response came in on Pantoja supporter’s tweet:

While many others hailed ‘The Assassin Baby’ for his dedication:

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Pantoja’s supporters highlighted his effective elbow and upkick techniques, solidifying his status as the new Flyweight kingpin. Despite Moreno’s 0-3 record against Pantoja, it’s clear that their rivalry is far from over.

Having competed against each other twice before, with Pantoja emerging victorious in both encounters, their third bout solidified his dominance over Moreno. The first meeting took place in 2016 during ‘TUF 24’, where Pantoja submitted Moreno with a rear-naked choke in an exhibition bout. Their second meeting occurred at UFC Fight Night 129 in 2018, resulting in Pantoja securing a unanimous decision win.

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What are your thoughts about Moreno vs. Pantoja? Let us know in the comments below.

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Written by:

Mayur Soni

906Articles

One take at a time

Mayur Soni is a UFC writer at EssentiallySports. His journey as an MMA fan started with Conor McGregor’s historic 13-second knockout of Jose Aldo in 2015, which sparked his love for the sport. Since then, he has closely followed the sport and gained an in-depth understanding of its nuances, which reflects in his insightful and analytical writing.
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Edited by:

Rupkamal Sarma