Renato Moicano warns Paddy Pimblett not to accept his fight challenge after a dominant victory at UFC Paris, emphasizing his readiness to hurt Pimblett and reflecting on his journey and aspirations in the UFC.
Renato Moicano has a clear message for Paddy Pimblett after finishing Benoit Saint Denis in the main event of UFC Paris on Saturday. Don’t accept my callout.
Moicano left Saint Denis bloodied after a dominant first round. Eventually, the doctor stopped the bout before the third round at Accor Arena in Paris.
He called both Dan Hooker and Pimblett “easy fights” in his in-cage post-fight interview. Bold words, right?
Moicano doubled down on this at the post-fight press conference. He called Hooker “easy money” and warned Pimblett against facing him next.
“Don’t accept the fight or I will elbow your skull,” Moicano said, referring to Pimblett. “Please, don’t accept the fight; I’m gonna hurt you. I’m gonna elbow your skull.”
Pimblett is 6-0 in the UFC, beating Bobby Green via first-round submission in his most recent appearance in July. Meanwhile, Hooker has won his past three inside the octagon, topped by a split decision over Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305.
The talkative Englishman responded to Pimblett’s callout via social media. "Let’s do this," he wrote.
Moicano celebrates the 10-year anniversary of his UFC debut in December. He reflected on the only time he headlined a UFC event: a knockout loss to “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung in June 2019.
“I was never easy money,” Moicano said. “The only time I was easy money was against Korean Zombie a long time ago."
"He knocked me out in the first round," Moicano continued. "But since then, I changed completely my training camp, my division, everything."
"So I don’t wanna be easy money,” he concluded.
Moicano said he wants to coach a season of The Ultimate Fighter “for the exposure.” He’s eyeing a future shot at the UFC lightweight belt.
He’s eager to re-enter the cage “as soon as possible” after going 3-0 so far in 2024. Ambitious? Absolutely.
“I’ve been in the UFC for 10 years and three years ago nobody knew me,” Moicano said. “And I always work hard."
"But it doesn’t matter if you are the best fighter in the world and nobody knows," he added. "So I want more cameras, more people talking about me in MMA."
"That way," Moicano explained, "I can bring more attention and make my case to fight for the belt eventually.”