Dana White: UFC looking to turn Deiveson Figueiredo around vs. Brandon Moreno in December

LAS VEGAS – Dana White likes to say he never makes matchups the night of the fights, but UFC 255 proved an exception to the rule.

Moments after UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo submitted Alex Perez in less than two minutes Saturday and retained his title, the UFC president announced the promotion is hoping to turn him around quickly.

According to White, the UFC is targeting Figueiredo (20-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) vs. Mexican flyweight Brandon Moreno, who defeated Brandon Royval by TKO in the UFC 255 featured prelim.

“We’re going to keep (Figueiredo) here,” White told MMA Junkie at the post-fight news conference. “He’s not going back to Brazil. We’re going to turn him right around (in) December. That’s what we’re working on.”

UFC 255 was Figueiredo’s first title defense. With the win, he extended his winning streak to five. Over the span of his 10 UFC fights, Figueiredo has picked up seven finishes, including a title-clinching submission of Joseph Benavidez in a match for the vacant belt on July 19.

Moreno (18-5-1 MMA, 6-0-1 UFC) is 4-0-1 in his most recent five outings. The UFC portion of the streak includes wins over Royval, Jussier Formiga and Kai Kara-France – and a split draw with Askar Askarov.

UFC 255 took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2/ESPN+.