Lone’er Kavanagh skyrocketed himself up the flyweight ranks with a big win over Brandon Moreno at UFC Mexico.
Both fighters showed hesitancy in the opening round, though it was Kavanagh’s onslaught of brutal calf kicks that left a mark on both the stanza and Moreno’s lead leg.
Moreno could already be spotted shaking out his leg near the halfway point of the second as the bruising on his calf became more and more noticeable. With Moreno compromised, Kavanagh caught the former flyweight king with a counter right that had Moreno on wobbly legs.
Smelling blood in the water, Kavanagh turned up the heat and nearly put Moreno out. However, ‘The Assassin Baby’ weathered the storm and ultimately made it out of the round.
Moreno managed to slow down Kavanagh in the third, shooting for a couple of takedowns near the cage. Moreno failed to get Kavanagh to the mat, but he prevented the Brit from offering up any additional offense before the end of the round.
‘The Assassin Baby’ kept that strategy going in the fourth, spending more than half of the period pressing Kavanagh against the fence. Once Kavanagh freed himself from Moreno’s grasp, the Brit offered up another nasty calf kick that had Moreno noticeably grimacing.
Moreno continued to clinch in the fifth, but it was Kavanagh who would land the little bit of offense in the round, catching ‘The Assassin Baby’ with a counter left before connecting with another nasty calf kick.
Moreno racked up another few seconds of control time before the bell, but in the end, it wouldn’t be enough for the ex-champ.
Official Result: Lone’er Kavanagh def. Brandon Moreno via unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47).
Check Out Highlights From Brandon Moreno vs. Lone’er Kavanagh at UFC Mexico: