Brandon Moreno defeats Steve Erceg in close fight


Brandon Moreno sent the Mexico City crowd home happy Saturday at Arena CDMX – but it wasn’t easy.

In the UFC on ESPN 64 main event, Moreno (24-8-2 MMA, 12-4-2 UFC) outpointed former UFC title challenger Steve Erceg (12-5 MMA, 3-4 UFC) en route to a unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46) win.

For five rounds, the fight was a close technical affair. While Moreno appeared to get the better of most exchanges, Erceg did a lot to potentially put doubt in the judges’ minds.

Moreno started strong, but Erceg caught up quickly. It became essentially tit-for-tat from there. While everyone is entitled to their opinions, there were only three that mattered. The three judges cageside awarded Moreno the unanimous decision win – much to the delight of the passionate crowd in Mexico City.

After the win, Moreno called for a shot on UFC 320, which was announced Saturday for Sept. 13 in Guadalajara, Mexico as the promotion’s annual Noche UFC event.

Champion Alexandre Pantoja does not currently have a fight on the books, though has been rumored to face Kai Kara-France next.

With the win, Moreno knocks off another top contender. In November, he defeated Amir Albazi by unanimous decision and snapped a two fighting losing skid in doing so.

Erceg continues to compete against top contenders, but without the results he’d hope for. After an impressive performance in a title challenge loss to Pantoja, Erceg was quickly finished with punches by Kara-France. Saturday’s loss was his third in a row.

Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 64 results include:

  • Brandon Moreno def. Steve Erceg via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46)
  • Manuel Torres def. Drew Dober via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:45
  • Edgar Chairez def. CJ Vergara via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:30
  • Raul Rosas Jr. def. Vince Morales via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
  • David Martinez def. Saimon Oliveira via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:38
  • Kevin Borjas def. Ronaldo Rodriguez via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
  • Ateba Gautier def. Jose Daniel Medina via knockout (knee) – Round 1, 3:32
  • Melquizael Costa def. Christian Rodriguez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
  • Loopy Godinez def. Julia Polastri via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
  • Rafa Garcia def. Vinc Pichel via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
  • Jamall Emmers def. Gabriel Miranda via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:06
  • MarQuel Mederos def. Austin Hubbard via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 64.

Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.





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