Preview: UFC Fight Night 229 ‘Dawson vs. Green’

Welterweights

Joaquin Buckley (16-6, 6-4 UFC) vs. Alex Morono (23-8, 12-5 UFC)

ODDS: Buckley (-175), Morono (+145)

Buckley’s welterweight debut went well enough, as he looked much the same fighter he did as a middleweight, which is a bit of a double-edged sword. A fun prospect upon signing with the UFC in 2020, Buckley achieved sudden virality when he won his second UFC bout with a spinning jumping back kick that ranks among the greatest highlights in mixed martial arts history. To the credit of both Buckley and the UFC, they decided to strike while the iron was hot and stay busy with winnable fights, but once he got knocked out by Alessio Di Chirico in his first fight of 2021, “New Mansa” became a bit of a forgotten man and fell back to the middleweight pack. Buckley quietly rebounded with a three-fight winning streak come 2022, but he eventually ran into a clear ceiling with losses to Nassourdine Imavov and Chris Curtis. Buckley apparently felt moving down to welterweight would solve his problems, but his issues run deeper. For all his athleticism and talent, he fights with a blitzing style that does not provide much of a change of rhythm, allowing savvier opponents to eventually settle into a groove and time him. Andre Fialho did not meet that standard in Buckley’s first trip down to 170 pounds, but Morono makes for a much more interesting proposition.

A relatively unremarkable fighter upon signing with the UFC in 2016, Morono has developed a crafty game over the years that has found him plenty of success despite being a subpar athlete for this level of competition. It makes sense that “The Great White” doubles as a coach nowadays, as he usually comes into fights with a smart game plan that allows him to take advantage of whatever his opponent leaves for the taking. Morono rode a four-fight winning streak into a December loss to Santiago Ponzinibbio—a fight the Fortis MMA rep was winning up until he got knocked out. It was a reminder that he is always at risk for getting blasted by an explosive opponent. However, with a May win over Tim Means, Morono has settled right back into his spot somewhere around the 20th-best welterweight on the UFC roster. This looks like a fairly basic dynamic where Buckley needs to blast the Texan before Morono settles into a groove and can find some accurate counters. While it is a close call, the read is that Morono can survive enough to find some success. The pick is Morono via second-round stoppage.

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The Prelims