“I Lost to a Guy Who’s Bad”: Renato Moicano Reflects on TKO Loss to Tom Nolan
Renato Moicano has opened up about his TKO loss to Tom Nolan, and instead of blaming the referee, he chooses to use the setback as a lesson.
This past Saturday, “Money” headlined UFC Vegas 123 at the Meta APEX against Nolan. When the bout began, the Australian landed a clean shot early in the first round, but Moicano quickly took him down. Moicano wrapped his legs around Nolan's body and spent the rest of the round in a dominant position.
In the second round, Moicano repeated the same approach, taking Nolan's back and landing shots while continuing to search for a submission. That is when the fight took a turn. While Moicano still had Nolan’s back, referee Dan Miragliotta stood both fighters up. Moicano later said he did not remember getting a warning.
After the reset, Moicano went for another takedown. However, Nolan met him with a high kick and then a knee to the head, after which the Brazilian went down. Nolan jumped on top and rained down punches, but Moicano hung on until the end of the round. Then, early in the third round, a tired Moicano ate a couple of heavy blows and went down again, after which Nolan landed punches and elbows to get the TKO finish.
The stand-up in round two left plenty of fans furious with Miragliotta, as it could have changed the outcome of the fight. Now, hours after the loss, the 37-year-old posted a raw, unedited video on his YouTube channel reflecting on the fight and his career.
Renato Moicano Credits Tom Nolan, Refuses to Start a War With the Referee
Moicano started by reassuring fans that he was not badly hurt. He said he went to the hospital and got the all-clear despite a few marks on his face. After that, the Brazilian made it clear that he was not going to start a war over the standoff. He said:
“So what am I going to do? I’m going to rebel against the world, I’m going to curse the referee, I’m going to start a war, right? First, congratulate Tom Nolan and say that he’s not responsible for anything... That guy went there and did a much better job than I could have done standing up.”
However, “Money” still believes he is the better grappler and felt Nolan’s wrestling had holes but said he could not capitalize on them. He added:
“I think I’m better on the ground than him, but I also couldn’t effectively execute the attacks, I couldn’t land the strikes... I lost to a guy who’s bad. I still think he’s bad. He’s a good guy on his feet, but despite being good on his feet, he has many deficiencies, especially in wrestling.”
“I was absolutely convinced, man, that I was going to take him down and finish him in the first round. Damn, the guy trained like crazy... What can we do? Thank , congratulate him, do better next time.”
Renato Moicano Says This Defeat “Doesn’t Define Me”
The loss was the thirtieth fight of Moicano’s pro career and dropped him to 21-8-1. However, Moicano claimed that one result will not change who he is. He explained:
“You’re not as good as you think you are in your victories. And you’re not as bad as you think you are in your defeats... So, this defeat doesn’t define me, but victory doesn’t define you either.”
Moicano then revealed that he is not done fighting and cautioned fans not to expect an immediate return. With two more children on the way and his own MMA promotion to run, he said:
“I’m still going to fight a bit more, man. I still want to earn more money... And for that, I have to be better, do better, fight better. It will take me a while to come back because I have a lot to fix, a lot to do.”
