"He's going to be a major star" - Javier Mendez explains why Brandon Moreno is becoming a major UFC draw

Javier Mendez has explained why Brandon Moreno is becoming a major UFC star. Mendez, a world-renowned coach from the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) gym, asserted that Moreno will be a huge draw for the UFC in the future.

Brandon Moreno made history at UFC 263 by becoming the first Mexico-born UFC champion. While Cain Velasquez is recognized for being the first UFC heavyweight champion of Mexican heritage, he was born in the US and is regarded as Mexican-American. This, in turn, has made Brandon Moreno the first Mexico-born MMA fighter to win a UFC title.

Brandon Moreno first challenged for the UFC flyweight title at UFC 256 on December 12th, 2020, fighting then-champion Deiveson Figueiredo to a majority draw. Their rematch took place at UFC 263 on June 12th, 2021, and it witnessed Moreno win via third-round submission to capture the UFC flyweight title.

During an appearance on The Real Quick With Mike Swick Podcast, Javier Mendez discussed a wide array of topics, including Brandon Moreno. Mendez stated:

“No, I didn’t see the last one”, Javier Mendez said, noting that he didn’t watch the first fight between Brandon Moreno and Deiveson Figueiredo. Mendez continued, “So, I didn’t know what to gauge it on. And, man, I was so impressed with him how he controlled the fight, how he changed the angles, how he had you going this way then he went this way, how he made you go that way then he went this way.”

“I mean, no, man, it was as flawless a performance as you can get. And he’s as real as they get too, I mean, his emotions. I mean, he let it all hang out there. And we forget one thing – Remember, he had entered the UFC. He was doing great. He lost two fights. They cut him. Then he comes back and look what he does. He comes back and he wins the freaking title against arguably one of the greats now because Figueiredo is got to be regarded as one of the greats, right? So, yeah, Brandon Moreno, hats off to him, man.”

“And now, based that he is homegrown, Mexico’s homegrown, I mean, hey, man – He’s going to be a major, major star. Because I know how big (a star) Cain (Velasquez) was, and he wasn’t homegrown. Cain was born in the U.S. of A. But Cain was a heavyweight. So, that was a big, big deal. But Brandon is homegrown, bro. So, it’s a monster deal now. And I’m very, very happy for him. You know, and I hope much success for him and his family. More to come, you know, we’re going to see more from him. And, you know, it was a great fight for; no, I take it back. It wasn’t a great fight. It was a one-sided fight.” (*H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)

Upon being asked to further expound on how Brandon Moreno’s current situation compares with Cain Velasquez, Javier Mendez suggested that Moreno will become a “gigantic star.” Mendez reiterated that Brandon Moreno would indeed be a huge box office draw for the UFC.

Cain Velasquez and Brandon Moreno are at vastly different stages of their respective combat sports careers

Cain Velasquez

Javier Mendez suggested that during Cain Velasquez’s reign as the UFC heavyweight champion, Velasquez’s popularity in Mexico was neck and neck with legendary Mexican boxing megastar Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez. Mendez added that Velasquez is still a star in Mexico, albeit not as big as he used to be during his time at the top of the MMA food chain.

Mexican-American UFC legend Cain Velasquez retired from the sport of MMA in October 2019. Meanwhile, the consensus in the MMA community is that Mexican UFC star Brandon Moreno has a long and likely successful career ahead of him, given the fact that he’s already proven himself to be the best in his division at just 27 years of age.

After sharing the Octagon for 25 minutes at UFC 256 there was nothing but respect between Champ and the Challenger HandshakeThis is what this sport is about.#UFC263pic.twitter.com/8gcnghzScu

— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) June 10, 2021

What a performance from Brandon Moreno!He dominates from start to finish against the Champ 👊The first Champion from Mexico in UFC history is crowned at #UFC263! 🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/lGsUS2ertO

— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) June 13, 2021