While Steve Erceg fell to a decision defeat against Brandon Moreno on Saturday, he and his team were able to show off some impressive adjustments along the way.
Erceg suffered a unanimous-decision loss to Moreno at UFC Mexico City, as the latter –fighting on home soil – earned scorecards of 49-46 from all three judges.
Those scores do not fully convey the strength of Erceg’s showing, however. The rounds were closely fought, and each flyweight’s striking made for an intriguing, technical battle.
What’s more, Erceg’s team exhibited creativity in trying to combat Moreno, when they realised the former two-time champion could seemingly hear their tactical advice.
“It’s very clear Moreno is listening to us,” Erceg’s coach told the Australian between rounds. “So, when we call body work, I want head work; when I call head work, I want body work.
“So, you just basically do whatever the f*** you want [in terms of specific strikes], whatever is there, but work on the opposite – because he’s very much listening to us.”
Erceg, 29, emerged from the bout with credit in the bank despite falling to a third straight defeat. After going 3-0 in his first three UFC fights, “Astro Boy” was fast-tracked to a title shot and lost a close decision to Alexandre Pantoja, before suffering a knockout by Kai Kara-France and this loss to Moreno. Still, the calibre of his opponents and competitiveness of his clashes with Pantoja and Moreno bode well for his future.
Meanwhile, Moreno impressed greatly as he picked up a second straight win en route to a potential third title reign. Last time out, in November, the 31-year-old outpointed Amir Albazi, having lost split decisions to Brandon Royval and Pantoja in his previous two outings.
The defeat by Pantoja – his third against the Brazilian – saw Moreno lose the flyweight title for the second time. He held the gold from June 2021 to January 2022 and from January 2023 until July of that year.
Moreno said he wishes for his next fight to also take place in Mexico, with Guadalajara hosting UFC 320 on 13 September.
