Figueiredo backtracks on Mexico fight after attacks online
It sounds like flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo has changed his mind about wanting to fight Brandon Moreno in Mexico.
It seems that the UFC flyweight champion no longer wishes to compete in Mexico against Brandon Moreno. Although Deiveson Figueiredo stated he wanted to have a fourth fight against the ‘Assassin Baby’ in his opponent’s home country, after getting attacked by fans online it looks like ‘Deus da Guerra’ has changed his mind.
On Combate’s podcast, Mundo da Luta, Figueiredo explained that this decision comes in part because his training partner – and former UFC champion – Henry Cejudo is also apparently not all that popular with Mexican fans. Because of the attacks he says they’ve both suffered, he’d like to see the quadrilogy bout happen anywhere else other than in Moreno’s back yard.
“If we fight in Mexico, you can be certain that we’re not walking out of there with Henry Cejudo,” Figueiredo revealed. “People want his head in Mexico. I’m granting Cejudo’s wish. We’re asking for the fight to be moved to Brazil or any other place but Mexico. Even I don’t want to go there. Those guys are pretty prejudiced, too. Some Mexicans come to me and call me ‘monkey’ and other things. Because of that, I don’t want to fight in Mexico.”
Figueiredo (21-2-1) finally scored a win over the Entram Gym talent in his last outing, back in January. Previously, the Fight Ready talent ended up on the wrong end of a Moreno submission in 2021—after fighting him to a majority draw back in 2020. If they do manage to face off again in 2022, it will make for the first four-fight series between two athletes inside the Octagon.
However, one of the hurdles standing in the way of that booking is the fact that Figueiredo would also like to see a historic fight purse of $1 million for that historic fight. The kind of money that no flyweight champion previous has ever earned. If the UFC cannot meet Deiveson’s demand, the Brazilian would not be opposed to taking on a different contender in his next title defense.
“I’m asking for one million dollars for the fourth fight to happen and it’s getting kind of annoying. It all boils down to a simple conversation. I need to have a sit-down with them so we can arrive at a figure and I can fight Kai Kara-France or whoever it may be.”
Before the trilogy against Moreno, Deiveson was on a five-fight winning streak, with victories over Joseph Benavidez twice, Alexandre Pantoja, Tim Elliott and Alex Perez—all but one of those bouts ending inside the distance.