Tom Nolan defeats Renato Moicano by TKO in third round at UFC Vegas 123

Renato Moicano faced Tom Nolan in the lightweight main event of UFC Vegas 123 at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

Moicano, who joined the UFC in 2014, moved up to 155 pounds after consecutive losses in 2019 and had previously challenged Islam Makhachev for the title on short notice. Nolan, a 2023 Contender Series signee, entered the bout on a five-fight winning streak and was making his first main event appearance in the promotion.

“A gente se preparou pra isso. A City Kickboxing é a melhor equipe do mundo. Eu sabia que essa luta poderia ir pra cinco rounds, estava muito confiante que quanto mais longa fosse a luta, seria melhor pra mim.”

In the opening round, Moicano took Nolan down early and controlled him from the back until the bell. Nolan landed dangerous strikes in the second round and pressured Moicano on the feet, nearly finishing him with a knee and elbows before the round ended standing.

Nolan started the third round well on the feet. When Moicano attempted to take the fight to the ground, he ended up on the bottom and absorbed ground-and-pound strikes until the referee stepped in to stop the contest.

Nolan won by technical knockout in the third round, extending his organizational winning streak to six consecutive victories. He said his team at City Kickboxing prepared him for a potential five-round fight and that he was confident a longer bout would favor him.

Brazil had four other representatives on the card, with the overall result being two wins and two losses.