Athletes
Alex Morono | Pride and Perspective
Welterweight Veteran Shares Outlook Ahead Of Exciting Clash With Carlos Leal At UFC 313
Alex Morono is set to achieve another career milestone this week as he readies to make the walk and face Carlos Leal on Saturday night at UFC 313 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
After close to 10 years competing inside the Octagon, the Houston native will receive his Drug-Free Sport jacket commemorating 50 clean anti-doping tests, which has been something he’s been looking forward to for quite some time, even if he couldn’t always put his finger on why.
“I’ve been looking forward to that jacket for some time and I never really knew why,” began Morono, who made his promotional debut with a split decision win over Kyle Noke at UFC 195 in January 2016. “But I think it’s a symbol of being tenured in the UFC for so long, so I’m excited to achieve that jacket goal.
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“(It) took nine years, so it’s not like those tests happen a lot, so I’m really excited about it,” he said with a smile.
While reaching the clean test milestone is certainly a point of pride for the 34-year-old welterweight, it’s also just a piece of the bigger picture approach the veteran has always taken when it comes to recognizing his place in the MMA ecosystem, what he’s been able to accomplish, and how that impacts those around him.
“Getting to the UFC is hard enough, and staying in the UFC is even harder, and I think I was able to surpass so many personal expectations,” he said when asked about his ability to weather the ups and downs of a career forged inside the Octagon, competing in one of the most talent-rich divisions in the sport.
“Almost 10 years and over 20 fights, when you say that, it’s a lot, but there is always several months between fights, so it’s always very much a fight-by-fight basis. I tell you, man, I wholeheartedly prepare and psychologically get ready to win, so every fight that I haven’t won has been a reality breaker, but you’ve got to learn your lessons and move on; it’s just part of the game.
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“Plus I have a good crop of fighters coming up,” continued the proud coach and leader of the Gracie Barra The Woodlands team, who has shared the cage with veterans like Max Griffin, Anthony Pettis, and Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, as well as newer arrivals to the promotion like Rhys McKee, Matthew Semelsberger, and now Leal. “I had some guys come up with me — like Ricky Turcios; he and I were in the same generation — but then we had another generation after them. One of my guys is making his bare knuckle boxing debut here pretty soon, the other guy is a Fury FC champ we’re looking to get signed to the UFC as soon as there is an opening; he’s on a really good four-fight winning streak, Cameron Graves. Then we have another group of young pros; give them two more years.
“I feel like everything I did blazed a trail in the path they can take to get to the UFC as well. It’s not just about doing well for myself — it’s about learning the business from the inside so I can guide these youngsters to, ideally, a better career than I had.
“Beyond that, I get to hang out with my friends all day and then do my favorite hobby, which is training,” he added. “I’m lucky with Houston because we had Legacy back in the day, and now we have Fury FC, and I get to do the broadcast work for Fury, so I watch local fights two, three times a month; watch fights, and then prep my guys, corner, and fight.
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“I genuinely, truly get to live the mixed martial arts lifestyle and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Proud as he is of the longevity he’s achieved competing at the highest level and eager as he is to pass on his knowledge to the next generation, Morono is still very much focused on continuing to make the walk and mix things up himself.
“I would love to fight into my later 30s,” he said quickly when asked where his own career fits into the greater scheme of all that he has going on in his professional life. “To be fair, my last fight against ‘D-Rod,’ I was genuinely disappointed that I didn’t win that decision. I landed more head strikes, did more damage; every time we had an exchange and exited, I landed, so I thought I won that fight.
“Granted, I know I lost a split, but that one was as narrow as it gets.”
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That narrow setback came on the heels of a unanimous decision loss to Niko Price in a bout where Morono struggled to rehydrate following his weight cut and wasn’t feeling like himself as he made the trek into the Octagon. Prior to his dominant win over Court McGee, he landed on the wrong side of things in a bout with Joaquin Buckley, a result that has aged well given the St. Louis native’s ascent up the rankings, and reminded “The Great White” about the importance of always being dialed in, regardless of opponent or venue.
Having learned those lessons, made the appropriate adjustments, and put all that in the rearview, the diehard fan and tenured UFC competitor is eager to share the Octagon with Leal this weekend, and represent the promotion once again.
“I was watching some video from Dana White, and he was like, ‘We always try to open up the prelims with a fun fight,’ and then we got the opening prelim spot, which is pretty cool,” began Morono, who carries a 24-11 record with one no contest into this weekend’s clash with Leal. “I’m excited for this one. I feel like I have to represent the UFC more than normal, especially with him coming out of the PFL, but this is a good fight; it’s a tough fight too.
“He’s new to the UFC, but he’s got a lot of experience, which you don’t see that often,” he said of Leal, who landed on the wrong side of the scorecards in a debated decision loss to Rinat Fakhretdinov last time out in his promotional debut. “This will be a good, fun fight; he’s a kickboxer by trade, as am I, so I think there will be some good exchanges on the feet.
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“He’s a durable, hard-nosed striker, so you know me — I’m gonna move my feet around and try to bomb right hands,” Morono added, grinning. “I think this will be a fun fight. I fought a lot of guys like him in the UFC before.”
Ideally, that experience — both against comparable opponents and the many more trips he’s made into the Octagon — help swing things in his favor, and he can show the UFC sophomore Leal that things are a little different when you get into the shark-infested waters surrounding the Top 15 in the welterweight division.
UFC 313: Pereira vs Ankalaev took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 8, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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