Last night (Sat., Feb. 28, 2026), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ventured forth to Arena CDMX in Mexico City, Mexico for UFC Mexico City. The theme of the night was Mexican talent and mismatches, as the card featured an unusual amount of local talent and gigantic differences on the betting odds. The latter certainly can be a recipe for great finishes, but it’s fair to say expectations were reasonably low ahead of time for the Flyweight-led fight card.
Let’s take a look back over the best performances
and techniques of the evening:
The Fading Flyweight King
Lone’er Kavanagh put a real beating on Brandon Moreno in his short-notice main event opportunity.
The English striker’s speed and power were certainly on display, and Moreno — forever one of the toughest men on the roster — proved a durable and determined receptacle for his offense. In particular, however, it was the kicks of Kavanagh that really impressed. His quick lead leg stab to the midsection really interrupted Moreno’s movement, while his calf kick ripped away the former champion’s speed and general fluidity. It was a clear-cut and impressive win for the up-and-comer, who rebounded from his first career loss in impeccable fashion.
Simultaneously, the bigger story feels like Moreno’s falloff. There was a time when Moreno was a well-rounded striker with a wide set of tools. He looked different fight-to-fight and built his offense from the ground up. In recent years, Moreno has become more and more of a head hunter and has grown rather one-dimensional with his focus on landing that wide overhand right.
He’s still a very good Flyweight, but it’s sad to see a former divisional great — a man who has gone toe-to-toe with a who’s who of the division — fade at the young age of 32. On paper, that’s quite early, but it has to be considered that Moreno has been fighting for quite a long time and taken part in plenty of bloody wars of attrition. Furthermore, Flyweight is a division where speed and athleticism are even more important than average, so it’s going to be difficult for Moreno to compensate for his declining athleticism.
Still The King
It’s not every day a 39-year-old veteran with nearly two decades of wear-and-tear holding him back absolutely styles on a -500 favorite who is 13 years younger.
King Green is a special fighter. He’s not at his athletic peak anymore, but he’s still crafty and nearly as quick as ever. Though Zellhuber is a rangy Southpaw with a great left leg — a style that should theoretically trouble Green and his shoulder-rolling defense — he never managed to establish his range. Green was too quick to get inside early on both with punches and his wrestling. It was nice to see Green wrestling so proactively here, as that’s always been a solid weapon in his game that too often remains in his back pocket.
Case in point: this is the most takedowns Green has landed in a fight since Sept. 12, 2020 versus Alan Patrick.
Takedowns aside, Green beat up Zellhuber just about everywhere. The Mexican prospect only really came close to offense while threatening a buggy choke in the second for a long while, and otherwise Zellhuber was used as a punching bag. Late in the second, a Green pull counter cracked Zellhuber’s chin and sent him reeling, ultimately producing the knockout.
It might be time to reconsider Green’s current position. He’s widely viewed as badly faded, but he’s only lost recently to very strong competition in Mauricio Ruffy, Paddy Pimblett, and Jalin Turner. By starching Zellhuber as a significant underdog, Green has made a strong statement that there’s still plenty left in the tank.
Flyweight Fireworks
Imanol Rodriguez vs. Kevin Borjas was an absolute banger.
Borjas started the fight really hot, throwing a ton of volume both actively and on the counter. He actually rocked Rodriguez the first time from his back foot, catching the young talent coming forward aggressively and sitting him down. Immediately, he pursued him with a wild flurry of punches that hurt Rodriguez more than once, but a key takedown allowed Rodriguez to recover his senses.
By round two, unfortunately, Borjas was slowing down. “El Gallo Negro” has had issues with managing his pace and gas tank in the past, which certainly seemed the case here. As he tried to take a breather, Rodriguez stayed in his face and was throwing absolute fastballs with his right hand. Before too long, one found the mark, and Borjas hit the canvas in a way that made it clear he wasn’t getting back to his feet any time soon.
26-year-old Imanol Rodriguez is still rough around the edges, but the prospect has grit, power, and athleticism aplenty.
A Worthless Win
Ryan Gandra steamrolled Jose Medina in just 41 seconds to secure a UFC debut victory (and $25k bonus!). I have nothing against “Problema” — maybe he’s a swell guy and future champion — but I see no point in talking about the specific punches he used to demolish Medina, who holds the unfortunate distinction of being the worst UFC fighter since … CM Punk?
This isn’t ill will towards “Chicho” either, but let’s call a spade a spade. Medina lost his Contender Series fight and looked bad. He lost his first three UFC fights and looked bad, getting finished quickly twice. Is it at all surprising or meaningful that he looked inept in his fourth appearance and was quickly blown out of the water? He has never been good enough to be a UFC fighter, so this debut win is hard to take particularly seriously.
I look forward to Gandra’s second UFC appearance against his first real UFC opponent.
Additional Thoughts
- Javier Reyes defeats Douglas Silva de Andrade via first-round knockout: Douglas Silva de Andrade has never been a particularly great Bantamweight, and he’s now 40 years old. His unexpected move to Featherweight did not come with great expectations, but the Brazilian has always been a fun slugger if nothing else. Indeed, he managed to sting Reyes early with a cracking right hand, but Colombia’s Reyes popped up and jumped right back into the fire. Soon afterward, he floored de Andrade with a looping right of his own to counter a low kick. Once on top in dominant position over a wounded foe, that size advantage seemed to really benefit Reyes, as de Andrade could do little to defend himself while Reyes put together punches in bunches to draw the finish.
- Francis Marshall defeats Erik Silva via first-round rear naked choke: Marshall made it clear in very quick fashion that he was a step above his foe on the canvas. Silva started well enough with a nice wheel kick, but as soon as Marshall changed levels for an easy takedown, the difference in skill was clear. Frankly, it was almost strange just how easily Marshall was able to lock in the RNC while both men were fresh in round one. It’s supposed to be tough to choke out a UFC fighter, but Silva barely fought the hands at all before tapping.
- Damien Pinas defeats Wes Schultz via first-round knockout (highlights): How long has it been since a 23-year-old Nova Uniao prospect debuted with a nasty stoppage? Pinas impressed here against the Contenders Series product, quickly establishing his speed and crispness advantage while easily shutting down his opponent’s attempts to wrestle. Before long, Schultz was looking desperate, and Pinas ended his night early with a 1-2 down the pipe. It’s only a single victory over mediocre opposition, yet it’s still a promising start to Pinas’ young UFC career.
