Renato Moicano finds himself at a crossroads where a shift in personal priorities signals that his time with the UFC could be drawing to a close after his scheduled headliner bout against lightweight contender Tom Nolan at UFC Vegas 123 this Saturday.

In a conversation with MMA Fighting, the Brazilian lightweight veteran revealed that his relationship with the UFC could be drawing to a close pretty soon.

“I don’t know (how I feel about that),” Moicano said. “We have to wait and see. After I fight this (fight), fight the next, and I see how I feel and how much money I’m making in the UFC. If the money is good, if it’s worth it, nice, let’s go. If not, I’ll have (other) stuff to take care of (me), you know?”

By ‘other stuff,’ Moicano basically means the business brand he has built to set him up once his fighting career is over. Stepping into the role of a promoter in Brazil, the lightweight contender has established a promotional venture called Money Moicano MMA, with an event coming up on December 5, 2026.

Expressing interest in the corporate side of combat sports, Moicano also admitted he wants to manage fighters based in his home country.

Moicano’s growing popularity as a content creator also remains an overriding factor in his decision to part ways with the UFC. While his Portuguese YouTube channel, Renato Money Moicano, has over 400,000 subscribers, the English-language channel, Money Moicano, commands a following of over 80,000.

As such, he isn’t strapped for cash. For someone who has long been vocal about the low pay offered in the UFC, he is already looking forward to finishing out his contract with Dana White’s promotion.

With three fights left on his current contract, Moicano admitted he’d like to test out free agency rather than continuing his stay in the UFC.

“I want to fight this deal out for sure,” Moicano added. “I want to do the whole thing and then let’s see what happens. I would like to be a free agent, too.

“Just to see what it’s like, and in Brazil, I’m getting big, like getting popular. So who knows? Maybe boxing, influencing, something like that, doing all this stuff other than MMA.”

But that isn’t the only reason the 37-year-old is thinking about leaving the UFC. In particular, deep personal reasons seem to have forced Moicano to take a hard look at where his MMA career is heading.

His wife is expecting twins in December. With two other children already at home, Moicano anticipates taking an extended break around the birth and wants to compete before his family responsibilities increase.

The Brazilian’s plans also do not appear to stem from a plateaued career.

Ever since his UFC debut, his track record has been a rollercoaster of highs and lows. Although his career suffered a significant setback in 2025 with back-to-back losses from Islam Makhachev and Beneil Dariush, Moicano rebounded with a second-round submission win over Chris Duncan at UFC Fight Night in April.

Before the Duncan fight and later, Moicano was matched up against former opponent Brian Ortega. However, two back-to-back injuries prevented Ortega from competing, particularly in their scheduled main card bout at UFC 331 in September.

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“I was not expecting (Ortega to withdraw again),” Moicano said about the fight cancellation. “But it is what it is, you know? It is what it is. Actually, they offered me Brian (again). UFC asked me, ‘Do you want to fight Brian, November in Qatar?’ And I say, ‘Hell no,’ I’m not gonna fighting Brian Ortega again, because I just cannot trust that he’s going to show up to the fight.”

Though he defeated Duncan, Moicano revealed that heading into the fight, thoughts of quitting crossed his mind. Had he lost the bout, his career would have ended, as it would have been a third loss in a row. The scenario worried him.

Even if he quits, Moicano will not be the only prominent UFC figure who stepped into social media branding once the fighting career is over.

After retiring from the UFC, former heavyweight contender Brandon Schaub transitioned into podcasting and established hugely popular shows like The Fighter and The King and the Sting, alongside building the Thicc Boy Studios network.

Similar moves were taken by Quinten ‘Rampage’ Jackson and Demetrious Johnson. While the former light heavyweight champion has established himself as a well-known streamer and content creator through his Might Mouse brand, Johnson has become one of the most recognizable voices in combat sports.

Taking those examples into consideration, Moicano likely wants to keep his options open. He is not announcing his retirement and will decide what to do based on his earnings and other opportunities.