Renato Moicano
Renato Moicano has had enough of mixed martial arts. After a brutal and highly questionable loss at UFC Vegas 123,the fan-favorite Brazilian lightweight is already mapping out his exit strategy. He still owes the UFC three more fights on his current deal, and he intends to fight them out. Once that contract is up, though, he is trading the cage for the easy money of influencer boxing.
How One Bad Referee Call Changed Everything
Going into this past Saturday night, the 37-year-old veteran just wanted to finish his UFC contract and test the free-agent market. Then the Tom Nolan fight happened. Moicano had Nolan’s back and was actively hunting for a choke when referee Dan Miragliotta inexplicable stood them up. Seconds later, Nolan knocked Moicano out cold.
Under the UFC’s show-and-win pay structure, that single stand-up call didn’t just cost Moicano the fight—it cost him half his paycheck. Losing his win bonus off the back of a baffling referee intervention was the final straw. Now, he wants out of the sport entirely once his contractual obligations are done.
Easy Fights for Half a Million Dollars
Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show on Monday evening, Moicano didn’t hold back about his retirement plans. Signing with another MMA promotion doesn’t interest him at all; in his eyes, the UFC is the entire sport. If he is going to keep getting punched in the face in his late thirties, he wants the biggest check possible for the least amount of danger.
“I have three more fights, I want to finish my contract and once I finish my contract, I don’t want to fight in MMA anymore,” Moicano said. “I want to do boxing, like influencer boxing. I want to beat up people who don’t know how to fight like on Adin Ross’ show, you know? If they pay me half a million dollars to box, I would.”
He also pointed out that several Brazilian promotions are throwing serious money at crossover boxing matches right now. While UFC fighter pay remains a constant sore spot across the sport, outfits like Misfits Boxing are happily cashing in on the public’s appetite for spectacle fights—and paying veterans handsomely to participate.
The Tony Ferguson Factor
Self-preservation is also playing a big role here. Moicano has watched too many legends hang around way past their prime, and he refuses to become another cautionary tale.
“I don’t wanna be like Tony Ferguson. Eight fights, trying to be a champion, 40 years old on a six-fight losing streak, I don’t want that,” Moicano admitted. “Sometimes you have to realise when you’re done… I think after these three I’m done because the UFC are not gonna pay me enough.”
The funny thing is, Ferguson’s post-UFC resurgence actually proves Moicano’s point about the boxing market. Since leaving the Octagon behind, “El Cucuy” has gone 3-0 in the influencer boxing ring and even picked up the Misfits middleweight belt. Sportster estimates Ferguson pulls in anywhere from $200,000 to $500,000 just to show up. Given Moicano’s mic skills and massive fanbase, he should have no trouble commanding that same kind of money to rough up a few streamers.
