Brandon Moreno opens up on career struggles. Brandon Moreno, the former two-time UFC flyweight champion recently revealed he came dangerously close to walking away from MMA for good. In an interview, he admitted that the mounting stress and huge responsibilities he carried almost pushed him to retire.
Moreno explained that after losing his title and suffering another tough defeat, the pressure of being a national hero for Mexico hit him hard. He said the demands, media attention, expectations from fans, and constant high-stakes fights weighed heavily on his mind and body.
“Sometimes it’s just crazy how life works,” Moreno told MMA Fighting. “I was this close to retiring. I felt so stressful, I feel mentally and physically tired of all the responsibilities. The people sometimes don’t realize and all my respect to other fighters who can support all these things but I was the champion on a super important country like Mexico. It was a really huge responsibility.
“I was super stressed and tired and I just needed a little time off. Just a little bit, just a few months to spend time with my family, out of the gym to be with my daughters, to be with my wife, to spend time together and start to miss again those moments in the gym.”
Moreno did take a break from MMA, though it wasn’t a long one. He was out of action for roughly eight months before making his return, where he secured a convincing decision victory over Amir Albazi. That short hiatus, however, gave him a renewed appreciation for the sport and reinforced his desire to step back into the Octagon.
“Those moments where I was on the grind with my training partners and I felt it,” Moreno said. “Then in that moment, that’s when I realized that’s the thing I really loved and I came back and the fight against Amir Albazi — masterpiece. The fight against Steve Erceg, I tried to be more strategic because Erceg is really good with counterpunching. So I tried to be more careful but it was a really good victory.”
Already a two-time flyweight champion, Moreno hopes to add a third reign to his resume after facing Tatsuro Taira on the main card at UFC 323 on Saturday. A win could vault him right back to the top of the division, especially considering his fight takes place just before Alexandre Pantoja puts the 125-pound title on the line against Joshua Van in the co-main event. Considering Pantoja is the person who beat him for the title, Moreno won’t deny that it would mean more to get the belt back from him but truthfully he doesn’t care who walks out victorious in that fight.
“I would love to get that revenge against Pantoja for sure but the main goal is to get the title,” Moreno said. “That’s my only goal right now. Trying to watch the fight between them, between Pantoja and Van, it’s hard to be against Pantoja. For all the amazing victories he’s getting in the recent times. But Van right now has a super power and his super power is he’s young. He doesn’t care. He’s just fighting. He’s motivated and happy to fight. That is super dangerous for Pantoja so let’s see what happens at the end.
“When Van fought against Brandon Royval, I thought Brandon Royval would win but Van looked impressive. I think this fight, I’m going with Pantoja but be careful with that.” “The situation with the belt, it started to get more complicated after my loss to Royval,” Moreno explained. “So I tried to put a mindset where I just need to win. I just need to get fights, win those fights and just be always in front of the line for the title.
“One of the things I’m trying to change right now is being more consistent in my performances. Because I think that’s why I lost my title. My main focus is to get my title back and be consistent in my career. To get the opportunity to take advantage of all my experience, to support more of the responsibility. To accept the responsibility but all the pressure, all the things, how everything changed after the title, it was impressive.”
“Hopefully,” Moreno said with a laugh. “Let’s figure it out later. Because it’s always different. Even when you have the experience, even when you have an idea what’s coming in the future, something changes. “I’m just trying to be positive. I’ll just be ready for whatever happens and get the victory first of all. Get that victory, beat Tatsuro Taira and then be there in the front row for the fight for the title.”
Brandon Moreno’s story shows that even champions face moments of doubt. But instead of letting stress end his career, he took a step back, and returned stronger, proving that true grit isn’t just about winning fights, it’s about overcoming the battles inside your own mind.
