Outside Source
Lone’er Kavanagh earned the biggest win of his career on Saturday in Mexico City. | Getty/UFC
Lone’er Kavanagh was originally supposed to face Bruno Silva on March 14, but when the UFC came calling to offer a former champion in hostile territory on short notice, the British prospect didn’t hesitate.
The gamble paid off, as Kavanagh took a five-round verdict over Brandon Moreno in the UFC Mexico headliner at Arena CDMX in Mexico City on Saturday night. In victory, Kavanagh was able to rebound from a knockout loss to Charles Johnson in his last outing at UFC Shanghai this past August.
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“Sometimes you’ve just got to say f—k the fear and do it,” Kavanagh said told the UFC. “Believe in yourself, believe in the people behind you and let the rest write itself.”
Kavanagh outworked Moreno on the feet behind his jab and impactful low kicks, and he stuffed all eight of his opponent’s takedown attempts over the course of the 25-minute affair. Still, it was a closely contested fight, and Moreno did his best to slow his younger opponent down with plenty of control time against the fence.
“With Brandon you have to stay switched on the whole time,” Kavanagh said. “He’s dangerous. He’s a tough person… I had to stay switched on the whole fight — even towards the end, I had to double check. I’m very critical about myself. We got the win, and I’m very grateful.”
At one point in Round 2, the Great Britain Top Team product had Moreno reeling, and it appeard the end might be near for “Assassin Baby.” Moreno was able to weather the storm and make Kavanagh work for the entire five rounds.
Looking to Finish
“I wanted the finish. I’m always looking for a finish,” Kavanagh said. “At the same time, it’s Brandon Moreno, who’s very tough and it’s a five-round fight.”
Kavanagh credited his team for putting together a game plan to defeat Moreno on short notice.
“We had an opponent [before Moreno] but we had to adjust to a two-time champion in three weeks and we did it,” Kavanagh said. “I just do what they say.”
While Kavanagh may have lost some luster following his loss to Johnson last year, he has now emerged as a new contender at 125 pounds following his successful venture to Mexico City. That makes the lofty goal he set for himself at least a little more attainable.
“I want to become champ within the first two years of being in the UFC, and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get there,” Kavanagh said.
Kavanagh debuted in the Las Vegas-based promotion in November 2024 and has been victorious in three of his four Octagon appearances thus far.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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