Brandon Moreno doesn’t think Deiveson Figueiredo is interested in fighting him again.
Moreno and Figueiredo had their trilogy back in January at UFC 270 and it was Figueiredo winning by the decision to reclaim the flyweight belt. The victory made their series 1-1-1 and many thought the fourth fight had to be next. After the event, both men called for it to happen but recently, Figueiredo has come out and said he wants Kai Kara-France next as he says Moreno’s team was racist to him before UFC 270.
“Dear @danawhite I just wanted to say thank you for the opportunities that you have given me, my family and my country,” Figueiredo wrote on his personal Instagram. “You know that I would fight anybody, anytime and anywhere. That’s being said, I wanted to fight Brandon Moreno for the 4th time, because I know this is what the fans want.
“Until his Team crossed the line with racist comments. Calling me a monkey and even going to the extent of photoshopping a monkey’s face on top of mine,” Figueiredo continued. “You know what I’m talking about @raul_entram When all this happened I went on a campaign to stop racist and prejudice in my city where it is predominately Indians and blacks. As the UFC Champion of the world, I ask you to consider my wish. I wish to fight the next contender in line @kaikarafrance who has earned his spot. #stoptherasicm #weareone”
Now, after those comments, Brandon Moreno did an interview with ESPN Deportes about Figueiredo’s comments and he said his team is not racist. The misunderstanding was Marcelo Rojo, a UFC fighter and one of Moreno’s teammates was using filters on pictures of everyone that fight week.
“It’s just stupid,” Moreno said in Spanish during the interview. “He was playing with his phone and he was streaming live on Instagram and he was using many filters. It’s a shame we don’t have the full video because it was a live stream, he didn’t save it. He was using filters on everyone. Dana White, my teammates and he even used a filter on me. He was switching filters and then appears a monkey filter on Figueiredo, that’s true and someone took a screenshot. We don’t know who, and (he) starts calling Marcelo Rojo a racist. And you know Marcelo, you’re not going to let me lie: He’s not racist.”
With that, Brandon Moreno believes there is no choice but to book the fourth fight and close this chapter of their careers. He also believes he is the A-side so Figueiredo needs to do what he wants as this is the biggest fight for them, rather than Kara-France getting the title shot.
“I’ve already talked to the UFC, with the top guys in the promotion,” Moreno said. “They told me the fourth fight is set. At some point they told me not to worry. That the plan is for me to fight again for the title. So I think at this point Deiveson is running away from me. I’m not lying. UFC wants Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Brandon Moreno 4. I’ve said yes already, but the other part hasn’t…
“He needs to understand that he’s still the B-side on this, and that’s not my fault,” Moreno said. “I’m just here to fight and be the best. … Chances for him to lose this fight against me are very high and he sees a better opportunity vs. Kara-France to keep the belt and make some money. But he knows that the only ‘money fight’ for him is with me. Simple facts.”
The fourth fight was rumored to be happening in July.
