Figueiredo keeps title after back-and-forth fight vs. Moreno ends in draw
Deiveson Figueiredo is still the king of the flyweights.
Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno fought to a majority draw (48-46, 47-47, 47-47) in the UFC 256 main event Saturday night in Las Vegas in one of the best fights of the year. The draw means Figueiredo retains the flyweight title.
"I felt like a champion there," Figueiredo said in Portuguese through a translator during his postfight interview. "I felt like a champion every single round."
It's the fourth UFC championship fight to end in a draw.
The draw largely came courtesy of a point deduction to Figueiredo in the third round. He landed a devastating low blow - after already poking Moreno in the eye - that prompted the referee to take a point.
Figueiredo revealed after the fight that he was hospitalized Friday due to an infection.
"I had something happen to me yesterday. I had an infection. ... I was in the hospital until 2 a.m.," he said. "I didn't know how I was going to be able to perform, but hopefully I did a good job."
Figueiredo and Moreno exchanged huge shots on the feet throughout the five-round affair. They stunned each other on multiple occasions, but both their chins ultimately held up.
Figueiredo's best weapon proved to be his body shot, while Moreno scored with his overhand right. Moreno also took Figueiredo down multiple times, but Figueiredo generally returned to his feet quickly.
Moreno said he thought he almost did enough to win, but the challenger admitted Figueiredo keeping the belt was the right call. He added that his shoulder hurts "just a little bit" but said he'll return to the gym next week.
"I feel so happy," Moreno said in his postfight interview. "I wanted the belt, but it is what it is."
Figueiredo and Moreno broke the record for most significant strikes in a UFC flyweight bout, landing a combined 269 strikes, according to FightMetric's Michael Carroll.
With the victory, the 32-year-old Figueiredo retained his 125-pound belt for the second time after submitting Alex Perez three weeks ago at UFC 255.
Moreno, 27, saw his three-fight winning streak come to an end but extended his unbeaten run to six bouts.