Scouting Report: Marlon Moraes

Marlon Moraes

Born: April 26, 1988 (Age: 34) in Rio de Janeiro
Division: Featherweight
Height: 5’6”
Reach: 66.5”
Record: 23-11-1 (0-1 PFL) Association: American Top Team
Stage of Career: Post-Prime/Twilight

Summary: Moraes illustrates the incredibly high-skilled and demanding nature of the lower weight classes. For a time, he seemed like one of the best fighters in the sport. He had remarkably fast hands and deadly punching power, particularly from the right side, as well as a fine jab with which to set it all up. It went beyond his boxing, as he had a nearly perfect leg kick that was ridiculously fast, sudden, technical and powerful. Absent that weapon, he could simply knock out opponents with a head kick or well-timed knee. His abilities were not limited to the striking department, as he had excellent submission skills, powerful ground-and-pound and proved nearly impossible to take down. Even so, he has suffered five knockout losses in a row. Why? His defense continues to deteriorate, but the main culprits are an absolutely shot chin and atrocious cardio that affords him perhaps one round of energetic striking. Once exhausted, he becomes a sitting duck for opponents, whether they decide to strike or grapple. An attempt to move up to featherweight and fight at a much slower pace also failed, as he was eventually hit and stopped. Can he right the ship Saturday at the Professional Fighters League 2023 Season Opener? We shall see.

STRIKING

• Stance: Orthodox.
• Hand Speed: Still exceptional.
• Jab: Fast, technical, straight and snappy. He uses it to set up power punches well.
• Cross: Thrown with solid technique and power, but he rarely uses it.
• Left Hook: A little straight-armed, thus lacking rotation and power. He throws it with a decent arc and fairly fast and accurate.
• Overhand Right: Technical, sudden, fast and powerful. He used it to stun and drop the defensively sound Raphael Assuncao in their rematch.
• Right Hook: Carries similar properties to the overhand. However, it is not quite as sudden, making it easier to dodge.
• Uppercuts: A dynamic shot from the right side. Fast, sudden and technical, and he can throw it as a lead.
• Solitary Striker or Volume Puncher: When he has energy in the tank, he can fire beautiful combinations that are sleek and harmonious, no matter how many punches he throws or which kind.
• Favorite Combination(s): Anything off the jab, whether it is followed by an overhand right, a right hook, a cross or an uppercut.
• Leg Kicks: Fast, hard, sudden and accurate, like a whip. He has hurt countless opponents badly and recorded at least one stoppage with them.
• Body Kicks: Uses them less often than those to the legs or head. While excellent, they are somewhat telegraphed but quite fast and powerful.
• Head Kicks: He has to set them up, so they are not particularly well-hidden. However, they are fast, accurate and deadly, with the notoriously durable Jimmie Rivera among the notable victims.
• Chains Kicks to Punches: No.
• Knee: A tremendously powerful, fast and well-timed shot which he can counter dipping opponents. Ask Aljamain Sterling.
Offensively, Moraes is one of the greatest strikers the lower weight divisions have ever seen. He has naturally fast hands and tremendous punching power in his rights, along with hellacious kicks. Everything, however, starts from his fast, technical and straight jab. From there, his overhand right and right hook are absolutely devastating, possessing every quality you could want in punches. His right uppercut is dangerous, too, and he can string together beautiful, fluid combinations. Plus, he wields some of the best leg kicks in MMA history; they are almost impossible to counter and inflict tremendous damage. If opponents worry too much about those weapons, he can go upstairs and find knockouts with his head kick or a perfectly timed knee. Unfortunately, Moraes struggles on the defensive side of the equation, his issues exacerbated by a weak chin. Most of his best qualities disappear once he fatigues.

CLINCH

• Physical Strength: Tremendously powerful, even against similar opponents and world-class grapplers.
• Technique: Has a mastery of the fundamental positions, as he frames and spins off quite well.
• Knees: Excellent in the rare times he stays there.
• Elbows: Does not throw them.
• Defense Against Knees/Elbows: Vulnerable to being kneed repeatedly at close range once fatigue sets in.

Moraes does not like to be in the clinch and usually separates quickly thanks to his strength, technique and the ability to spin off. When he fails to do so, chances are fatigue has taken hold. Then he becomes vulnerable to close-range knees, as Henry Cejudo demonstrated.

GRAPPLING

• Wrestling from a Shot: Difficult to say since he has not done so for some time. A tired, desperate shot against Cejudo did not look too bad.
• Wrestling in the Clinch: Generally avoids this, but it is likely up to par given that he has proven to be a capable defensive wrestler.
• Takedown Defense: Depends on energy. When he was at full strength, he easily stuffed Cejudo’s attempts. Once he gasses, he becomes much weaker and can be taken down without much effort, as Merab Dvalishvili showed.
• Ability to Return to Feet: Excellent when his cardio holds up, instantly exploding back to a standing position. Almost non-existent when he tires.
• Submissions: Excels at taking the back and locking in rear-naked chokes fluidly. Wields tremendous squeeze on his guillotine—the maneuver he used to tap Assuncao in their rematch.
• Defense/Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu from the Bottom: If Moraes finds himself on the bottom at all, it is likely because his gas tank has failed him. In such cases, his defensive abilities are almost non-existent, as he does nothing to stop ground-and-pound and passively looks on while being hit. Cejudo and Dvalishvili finished him with ground-and-pound—something they have never done against any other high-level opponent.
• Top control: Only ends up there when he finishes off an opponent with strikes or a submission.
• Ground-and-Pound: Consists of fast, powerful punches. He incorporates his body well any time he gains separation.

Moraes has for quite some time sought to only engage in the striking department, as it is less energy-intensive than grappling. That is a shame since Moraes has excellent submission skills, especially when he threatens the neck with chokes. Moreover, he features ground-and-pound that is far superior to that of most fighters who find themselves in top position. While his energy lasts, he is almost impossible to take or keep down. However, when his energy wanes, he often concedes takedowns and looks incredibly vulnerable on the bottom, putting up little fight as he absorbs one strike after another.

INTANGIBLES

• Athleticism/General Physical Strength: Still strong and fairly dynamic early in a fight but less so than in past years.
• Cardio: One of his most glaring weakness. He has about one round of energy in him, and once he gasses, he is completely robbed of the ability to throw meaningful punches, move or defend.
• Chin: He has been knocked out in five straight fights, oftentimes by blows that did not look particularly damaging.
• Recuperative Powers: Poor.
• Intelligence: He tried to fight in a smarter and more measured manner in his last outing against Sheymon Moraes, only to be betrayed by his chin once again.