Moicano accepts UFC Vegas 123 loss to Nolan but blasts controversial referee reset

Renato Moicano has addressed his TKO defeat to Tom Nolan at UFC Vegas 123, posting a video message to fans hours after the main event loss at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas on October 31. The Brazilian lightweight accepted the result but made clear he believes a controversial refereeing decision altered the course of the fight.

With Moicano controlling Nolan’s back in round two, referee Dan Miragliotta called for a standing reset — a decision that drew immediate criticism. Moments after the restart, Nolan landed a knee that rocked Moicano, and the TKO stoppage followed in the next round.

“First of all, I want to congratulate Tom Nolan and say that he is not responsible for the reset in any way,” Moicano said. “He went out there and did his job. He was far superior to me on the feet. I think I’m better than him on the ground, but I also wasn’t able to effectively execute my attacks. I couldn’t get the job done.”

Moicano was generous in his praise for the 12-1 Australian, calling him “an excellent guy” — before adding, in characteristic fashion, “I still think he’s bad” as a top-level lightweight. “I lost to a guy who’s bad,” he said. “He’s good on the feet. But despite being good on the feet, he has a lot of weaknesses, especially in wrestling.”

The 37-year-old was candid about his own expectations going in. “I was absolutely convinced I was going to take him down and submit him in the first round,” he said. “He trained his ass off and put up an excellent defense. What can we do? Thank him, congratulate him, get better for next time.”

Despite the setback, Moicano ruled out any thought of retirement. “I’m not going to stop, I’m not going to get discouraged, and I’m not going to let anyone bring my head down,” he said. “It’s always a risk, brother. When you step into an MMA fight, there’s always a risk.”

Moicano has two fights remaining on his current UFC contract. Before the bout he had spoken publicly about his intention to fight out his deal and explore free agency — a plan that remains intact, even if the path there now looks considerably harder.