Brandon Moreno will have his eyes peeled for Alexandre Pantoja vs. Brandon Royval at UFC 296.
Flyweight champion Pantoja (26-5 MMA, 10-3 UFC) defends his title in a rematch against Royval (15-6 MMA, 5-2 UFC) in the Dec. 16 co-main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, which streams on pay-per-view following prelims expected on ESPN and ESPN+. In their first meeting, Pantoja submitted Royval by second-round rear-naked choke.
“It’s an interesting fight,” Moreno told MMA Junkie. “Pantoja, I fought against him like three times in the past, and the last one, I was very close. What I have to respect about him is he found a way to win. He got a lot of damage against me and he was just going forward. He has a lot of endurance.
“Royval, he has very good distance. He has an amazing and crazy pace in the fight. My question here is if Brandon Royval can be smart. Smart in the middle of the fight, to keep the pressure down, and do his game. So, let’s see what happens.”
Moreno (21-7-2 MMA, 9-3-2 UFC) is currently campaigning for a title eliminator vs. top contender Amir Albazi, who he sees as the only logical opponent for him next.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.