Reigning World Series of Fighting (WSOF) bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes successfully defended his title for the fifth time in New York City on New Year’s Eve. He defeated Josenaldo Silva in the first round due to a knee injury.
As of now, Moraes is still the WSOF 135-pound champion, but he is also a free agent. The Ricardo Almeida BJJ fighter spoke with MMAJunkie.com. He said he wants to face top competition, but he also wants to be valued:
“My idea is to fight the best and be valued for that. I have what it takes to fight the best, I’m absolutely certain. Let’s see what we’re going to do. I’m excited, and I hope good offers arrive.”
Moraes admits the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has the elite competition. The WSOF champion is looking for the right deal.
“The best are in the UFC, it doesn’t take an MMA expert to say that. Certainly, the best are there. But let’s see, let’s see if a good offer comes along and we can fight them and see what I can do. Because I’m sure I can arrive there in impressive fashion – not just there, but in any event, against any athlete in my division.”
Moraes paid close attention to the UFC bantamweight title bout between Cody Garbrandt and Dominick Cruz. Moraes believes he can match that high level of fighting.
“It was a very good fight, with an extremely high technical level. It was the day before my fight, and it was good. It really motivated me. And I saw that I’m at that level. It got me very happy and confident for my fight.”
You’ll have to go back to Nov. 2011 to find Moraes’ last defeat. Since then, he has been on a tear winning 13 straight bouts. It shouldn’t be long before Moraes makes his next move.
