ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Mexican fans showed up in droves on Saturday to witness the UFC's first Mexican-born champion, Brandon Moreno, defend his title for the first time. But by the slimmest of margins, Deiveson Figueiredo spoiled the party.
Figueiredo (21-2-1) reclaimed the 125-pound title he lost to Moreno (19-6-2) in August by defeating his rival in a unanimous decision. All three judges scored the flyweight title fight, which co-headlined UFC 270 inside the Honda Center, in favor of Figueiredo, 48-47.
Saturday's result brings the rivalry to an even record of 1-1-1. The two fought to a draw in December 2020, before Moreno dominated Figueiredo in their second meeting. After losing by submission in the rematch, however, Figueiredo looked like a completely different fighter in the trilogy, as his cardio and mental preparation was obvious.
"Today is my day," Figueiredo said. "For this moment, for Brandon, for us to give you the gift of a fight of the night, for everyone who was here. I've been away from my family for four months. I'm ready for a fourth fight against Brandon in Mexico."
According to UFC Stats, Moreno outlanded Figueiredo 106-95 in total strikes. But Figueiredo landed several devastating strikes, including a heavy right hand that knocked Moreno down, badly hurting him, at the end of the third round.
"I feel like I threw the better combinations with more speed, maybe he connected a little bit more power," Moreno said. "Obviously, I thought I won, but it is what it is right now. I feel I was putting better pace on the fight. I don't know. I need to watch the fight again and see what happened."
The trilogy bout saw the best of both men. Moreno's boxing and footwork were on display all night. He had great success with his left hook at the end of exchanges and was hard to track down in wrestling scrambles. Figueiredo answered with heavy low leg kicks that knocked Moreno off balance and powerful right hands.
Figueiredo left his native Brazil ahead of Saturday's fight to train with former flyweight and bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo in Arizona, and his adjustments clearly paid off. His patience was better, and his weight cut during fight week was noticeably improved from August.
Moreno's popularity exploded after he won the belt. Saturday's crowd was heavily in his favor and played a big role in the UFC setting a new gate record at the Honda Center. In the main event, Francis Ngannou fought Ciryl Gane for the UFC's heavyweight championship.
The loss was Moreno's first since May 2018.