Renato Moicano will be looking for a fresh start at 155 pounds, but it won’t necessarily be his permanent home.
After dropping two straight to Jose Aldo and Chan Sung Jung, the once streaking featherweight has decided to make the move up to lightweight.
“It’s been a while that my coach suggested to me to move up to the lightweight division, and I think now it’s the perfect time,” Moicano told MMA Junkie.
Moicano (13-3-1 MMA, 5-3 UFC) takes on Damir Hadzovic at UFC on ESPN+ 28 in Brasilia, Brazil, and he’ll look to kickstart his campaign to hit the 155-pound rankings.
The goal for Moicano is to compete against top-ranked contenders in either division, and hopefully get the opportunity to avenge his losses at 145 pounds.
“I’m planning on fighting in both (divisions) depending on the fight they offer,” Moicano said. “I want fight with the best of both divisions.
“I want to put together a sequence of wins and fight ranked guys in (the) 155 division, or get rematches with (Brian) Ortega and ‘Korean Zombie’ at 145.”
First, he has to get through Bosnia’s Hadzovic, who’s had mixed results in the octagon and is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Christos Giagos in June.
But Moicano knows not to underestimate him.
“(He’s a) great fighter – I respect his fighting skills and I’ll be ready,” Moicano said. “Right now, I just have eyes on Damir and I’m focused on that fight. But I definitely want to fight with the best of the division, like Paul Felder and the other ranked guys.”
Moicano scored big wins over Jeremy Stephens, Calvin Kattar and Cub Swanson and found himself with a big opportunity when he took on former UFC featherweight king Aldo at UFC on ESPN+ 2. It was a fight that could have propelled him to a title shot.
But the fight didn’t go Moicano’s way. He was stopped by Aldo in Round 2 with a TKO. He got another high-profile opponent at UFC on ESPN+ 12 in Jung, but suffered another stoppage loss.
Moicano said he has no excuses ahead of the fight in his hometown of Brasilia.
“I fought really good opponents and I do not have excuses,” Moicano said. “I hope to fight them again one day, and I know I can beat both.
“I’m very happy to fight in Brasilia, my home town, and I’m working hard to put on a show for them.”
Renato Moicano not ruling out move back to 145: 'I want fight with the best of both divisions'