John Moraga is stepping in on short notice to fight fellow top 15 flyweight Sergio Pettis at UFC Fight Night 103. Moraga, who has previously fought for the UFC Flyweight Title, isn’t feeling any pressure leading into this fight.
“The pressure’s on me in a sense, but I don’t let it get to me,” he said to MMA Junkie. “I feel like I actually perform best when I’m under pressure. My back’s been against the wall, even before I got to the UFC. I was never supposed to get here, and I was never supposed to stay here, so let’s do it…the motivation is in my losses. One thing I didn’t like about my last fight (against Nicolau) is I didn’t pull the trigger enough. That was the first time I felt like maybe I didn’t leave it all in there. I stay up at night kicking myself in the reat, and that’s enough motivation for me.”
Moraga has a lot of respect for Pettis, whom Moraga says is as good as him, no matter where the fight winds up going.
“This is the fight game,” Moraga said. “You can call it inconsistent, but this is what we do. (Losses have) happened to me. I’m not overlooking him at all. I know he’s tough – he’s well-rounded, he’s good everywhere, but so am I … so let’s go.”
UFC Fight Night 103 takes place on Sunday, January 15 from the Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix, Arizona with Yair Rodriguez and BJ Penn headlining.
