Marlon Moraes made his PFL debut tonight after reevaluating his premature retirement from the sport of mixed martial arts, but it was a night to forget for the Brazilian as he suffered a knockout loss to fellow countryman, Sheymon Moraes.
‘Magic’ announced that he is retiring from MMA during a bad patch in the UFC but shortly after was picked up by the Professional Fighters League. The South American was originally scheduled to face newly acquired Shane Burgos, but the brawler was forced to pull out of their bout due to injury.
Despite putting on a fantastic display by expertly mixing in his devastating striking and high-level wrestling, Marlon Moraes was caught with a huge overhand right that knocked him down to the canvas, with the finish following shortly afterward.
Marlon Moraes attempted to move up to featherweight and hoped to get his career back on track after a tough time inside the cage, but was unable to get off to a winning start in his PFL debut.
While it is unclear what he will do next, the former UFC title challenger didn’t announce his in-ring retirement following the bout, so fans can likely assume that he will at least compete once again.
Sheymon Moraes spoiled the 34-year-old’s night and is a 10-year MMA veteran with some experience under the UFC banner. After suffering a knockout loss to Brendan Loughnane in his first PFL outing, the Brazil native got to work and has won 4 of 5 fights since.
How good was Marlon Moraes during his prime?
Although each fighter tends to enjoy their prime in the sport at different ages, it seems Marlon Moraes endured his over a seven-year stretch, stemming from 2012-2019.
A two-fight win streak in XFC earned the 135er a chance to prove himself on the World Series of Fighting stage, an opportunity he welcomed with open arms. After five straight wins, the well-rounded athlete headlined his first event for the promotion and scored a big second-round submission victory.
Ending his career with WSOF in 2016 on the back of four straight finishes—with a win over the aforementioned Sheymon Moraes—the exciting talent earned his shot in the UFC.
Marlon Moraes suffered a split decision loss in his octagon debut, but he quickly put that behind him with back-to-back wins over John Dodson, Aljamain Sterling, Jimmie Rivera, and Raphael Assuncao, leading him to a bantamweight title shot. Unfortunately, for the ATT member, that signaled the end of his best years.
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