Renato Moicano has been forced to pull out of his planned Fight Island bout against Magomed Mustafaev, Ag Fight reports.
Moicano made a successful transition up to lightweight back in March when he was able to submit Damir Hadžović in just 44 seconds over in Brazil. He was initially set to square off with Mustafaev on October 17, who has won three of his five UFC bouts thus far, but it now appears as if that’s no longer happening.
The reason for him pulling out is undisclosed and it’s not yet known whether or not the UFC will attempt to rebook Mustafaev.
While Moicano is still considered to be an exciting prospect at 155 pounds, the man himself has admitted that he didn’t exactly cover himself in glory after his aforementioned win earlier this year.
“I was a little bit frustrated because I wanted to fight in front of my family and friends and my fans in Brazil. It was really different atmosphere than I am used to so it was a unique experience. It was not good behavior and I did wrong,” Moicano said to BJPENN.com. “But, I was frustrated because there were no fans and it made me angry because I trained so hard. The guy didn’t stop the takedown but I was wrong to do what I did after the fight. Damir is a good guy and he is a family man. I had to treat him better but I am happy with my performance. I lost my mind at the end of the fight and I want to apologize to everyone.”
He also spoke about a few potential opponents in the division, but neither is looking particularly feasible right now.
“I respect Paul Felder a lot. I know he is talking about not fighting as often so maybe he wants big fight. But, it makes sense,” Moicano explained. “I was seventh at featherweight and he is seventh at lightweight and I respect the guy. But, he lost to Hooker and I think he lost to Barboza. I want to test myself against him.
“I want to fight the best. If Felder doesn’t accept it, I want Iaquinta because he is a good guy too and a ranked guy who fought for the belt,” he continued. “It makes sense for it because he doesn’t have a fight booked. I want all the hard fights at lightweight and I know I can do well.”
Stay tuned for more information on Renato Moicano as details emerge.