Alex
Morono flies under the
Ultimate Fighting Championship radar as well as anyone.
The
Fortis
MMA mainstay will seek to improve upon a 12-5 record inside the
Octagon when he confronts
Joaquin
Buckley in a
UFC Fight Night 229 welterweight showcase on Saturday at the
UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Morono, 33, has posted five wins across his
past six outings. He last appeared at UFC on ABC 4, where he
subdued former
King of
the Cage champion
Tim Means with
a guillotine choke in the second round of their May 13
encounter.
As Morono makes final preparations for his forthcoming clash with
Buckley at 170 pounds, a look at a few of the rivalries that have
helped shape his career to this point:
Morono walked away with the Legacy Fighting Championship
welterweight title when he disposed of the Team 515 export with a
guillotine choke in the first round of their LFC 49 main event on
Dec. 4, 2015 at Diamondjacks Casino in Bossier City, Louisiana.
Krantz conceded defeat 4:29 into Round 1. Before the guillotine
fell, “D-Rock” seemed headed for a landslide victory. He executed
multiple takedowns, climbed to mount and opened a cut underneath
Morono’s right eye. The punishment was not enough of a deterrent.
Morono returned to his feet against the visibly fatigued champion,
let his hands go and forced Krantz to dive on an ill-advised
takedown. In an instant, the arm-in guillotine was place, with no
escape to be had. The tapout followed not long after the fighters
hit the mat.
The former
World Extreme Cagefighting and Ultimate Fighting Championship
titleholder overcame an inauspicious start, put some of his
otherworldly skills to use and picked up a unanimous decision over
Morono in the featured UFC Fight Night 183 prelim on Dec. 19, 2020
at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. All three judges sided with Pettis,
casting 29-28 scorecards in his favor. Morono capitalized on an
early slip in the first round, pounced on the
Roufusport cornerstone, progressed to the back and bloodied his
nose in the process. Pettis withstood his efforts, called upon his
deep reservoir of experience and took advantage of the one-minute
respite between rounds. “Showtime” slowly seized control with
superior strikes in the middle stanza, but he saved his best for
Round 3. There, in the final minute, he connected with a spinning
wheel kick that set Morono on wobbly legs. A finish did not
materialize, but Pettis’ message had been sent.
Morono on May 8, 2021 cut down “Cowboy” with punches in the first
round of their UFC on ESPN 24 co-main event at the UFC Apex in Las
Vegas. Cerrone succumbed to blows 4:40 into Round 1. Morono was the
instigator from start to finish, as he stayed busy with punches and
occasional kicks. Cerrone answered with body kicks, clinches and
jabs but never managed to force the Texan to change course. Morono
wobbled him with an overhand right and gave chase with punches and
knees along the fence before electing to briefly reset late in the
first round. He then sent Cerrone careening into the cage with
another clean right hand and unleashed a burst of follow-up shots
until referee
Marc Goddard
had seen enough. It remains the highest-profile victory of Morono’s
career.
“The Ultimate Fighter Brazil” Season 2 semifinalist took out Morono
with punches in the third round of their UFC 282 catchweight
feature on Dec. 10, 2022 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The end
came 2:29 into Round 3. Ponzinibbio focused his efforts on the body
and lead leg but struggled to string together meaningful offense
through the first 10 minutes. A short-notice replacement for
Robbie
Lawler, Morono scored with clean one-twos, body kicks and
well-hidden overhand rights. Ponzinibbio picked up his pace in
Round 3, then turned the tide in a blink with a devastating right
cross. The impact froze Morono where he stood and reduced him to
little more than a sitting duck, as his
American Top Team-trained counterpart hurdled toward him.
Ponzinibbio uncorked another right hand behind the ear, dropped the
former Legacy Fighting Championship titleholder at the base of the
cage and finished him there. The setback snapped Morono’s run of
consecutive wins at four.