Moreno wins fifth straight

Daniel Moreno faced what may have been the toughest test of his amateur mixed martial arts career Saturday, and passed with flying colors.

“It was a good fight,” said Eric Zamora, owner and head trainer at Zamora Boxing Gym on Montanus Drive. “It’s like my wife, Jen, said after the fight, ‘It’s probably good that it went all three rounds because now he knows he has stuff to work on.”

Moreno stepped into the cage Saturday for Barbarian Fight Club’s “Detonation” at the Liberty Center in Stafford. He faced undefeated Kevin “Cave Man” Mendoza in a 170-pound bout and, after an early scare, came away with a unanimous three-round decision victory.

“The best thing about going three rounds is the cage experience you gain,” Moreno said. “I was having the time of my life in there. It’s the first time I ever incorporated kicks, so it was just exciting.”

Moreno (5-1) last stepped into the cage in July as part of BFC’s “Vindication.” Zamora admitted the 24-year-old Culpeper native looked a little rusty after a two-month layoff, but said he was still impressed with Moreno’s cage presence.

“He is just so much calmer than a lot of guys who get in the cage,” Zamora said of Moreno. “The nice thing is that he agreed, after the fight, he has some work to do, but I know he’s always going to go in there and leave it all in the cage every time.”

Moreno won’t have to wait very long to prove his coach right. Looming Oct. 23 is a 155-pound title shot when Warrior Fighting Championship holds its first event in Culpeper. And after Saturday’s win, he’s feeling more confident than ever.

“(Saturday’s fight) made me realize I’ve evolved enough as a fighter to pull off wins while I’m rusty,” Moreno said. “It just shows that I’m getting better.”

Saturday’s bout opened with Moreno in a bad position. He shot in one Mendoza (3-1) in the first round, going for a takedown, but instead found himself in a guillotine choke.

“Just like we practiced, I knew I just had to escape from the side,” Moreno said.

Mendoza transitioned from the choke to the full mount but wasn’t active when he got there, according to Zamora, and Moreno was able to get out.

Moreno almost secured an armbar in the second, but the majority of the round was spent right where Zamora wanted it — on the feet.

“We knew he (Mendoza) was going to leave some openings because he is so wild, so we wanted to stand with him” Zamora said. “Daniel listened really well during the fight, landed some vicious leg kicks and even threw a superman punch.”

The third round was briefly halted after Mendoza got hit with an inadvertent low blow, but in Zamora’s words the last 30 seconds were, “The closest thing to a UFC fight I’ve seen.”

“It was just two guys standing in front of each other, hands down, throwing punches and kicks and trying to knock each other out,” Zamora said.

The victory marks Moreno’s fifth straight since losing his first career bout, and Zamora credits the streak to Moreno’s calm, collected demeanor in the cage.

“It’s like his second home,” Zamora said.