UFC
WSOF Champ Marlon Moraes thinks he's the best in the world, turning attention to potential jump to UFC
Sep 15, 2014 - 11:30:15 AM WSOF Champ Marlon Moraes thinks he's the best in the world, turning attention to potential jump to UFC

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Marlon Moraes picked up yet another win in the WSOF cage this weekend, taking out late replacement Cody Bollinger with ease in the main event at WSOF 13.

After the win, the WSOF Bantamweight Champion believes he's the best bantamweight in the world. It's a distinction he won't be able to garner while outside of the UFC, and though he's happy with WSOF as an organization, he's starting to talk as if an exit is inevitable.

"I believe that everyone can see I'm the best in the world," Moraes said after the event (via MMAJunkie.com). "Sooner or later, they'll have to let me fight the best... I felt I'm the best 135-pound fighter in the world [after the win]. I don't know. Maybe I'll head over there."

"I like World Series of Fighting a lot, but they know what my dream is. So if a good opportunity appears for both promotions, I feel they'll let me go my way."

Penick's Analysis: The best part about smaller promotions having prominent spots on television is that some fighters who might not get the same star treatment coming through the UFC's undercards can emerge out of that shadow. We saw it with some of those from EliteXC, Strikeforce, and the WEC, who now find themselves amongst the top end of their respective divisions in the UFC after establishing themselves as worth seeing outside of the organization. It doesn't work for everyone, but guys like Gilbert Melendez, Eddie Alvarez, Benson Henderson, Anthony Pettis (ok, the lightweight division is good), made their names first and foremost before they got to the UFC, and because of that they got more prominent spots than had they not been given the exposure in other promotions. Moraes is now another who people want to see inside the Octagon, and he'll come in at a higher level than had he simply been another random bantamweight on a UFC Fight Pass prelim. There's value to that, and hopefully the UFC is interested, because a fight between Moraes and anyone in the top 10 in the UFC is highly intriguing.