Brazilian UFC lightweight Renato Moicano recalled his fight with former division champion Dagestani Islam Makhachev.
In January, Moicano stepped in to replace the injured Tsarukyan and lost to Makhachev by submission in the first round.
"I was already cutting weight when they told me I would be fighting the champion. But no one compares to Islam, he is the best or second best fighter in the UFC. I consider him number one. For a title fight, I needed to make weight without mistakes, so I was sitting in the bath and crying, thinking: 'I will become the champion.' I earned a lot for that fight. I was able to negotiate new contract terms, so for the fight with Islam, I received the biggest fee of my career. It was life-changing money.
No matter how much money they paid me, I was upset and disappointed. I thought it was my moment. It was the perfect ending to my entire journey. In MMA, everyone has a chance. Imagine if I had knocked out Islam? That would have been powerful. And it could have happened!"— declared Moycano in an interview with UFC Brasil.
