Brian Ortegafight with Diego Lopes on Saturday at UFC 303 could be his last in the featherweight division.
Ortega (16-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC), a two-time UFC title challenger at 145 pounds, had already focused on moving up to lightweight for a divisional debut at UFC 306 on Sept. 14 at Sphere, in Las Vegas. Vegas before getting the call to fight on Saturday.
After Conor McGregor withdrew from the planned International Fight Week headliner against Michael Chandler, the UFC had to reshuffle the lineup for UFC 303. Ortega got the call to face Lopes (23-6 MMA, 3-1 UFC) and took advantage the opportunity, even if it disrupted existing plans.
“We talked about the September 14th fight at Sphere – it was the only conversation I had with them that made sense (about what’s next),” Ortega told MMA Junkie. “I said yes to that. They said yes. We all got excited and it was kind of in the world. They told me my weight class didn’t have anyone they wanted me to fight. They didn’t really want me to fight contenders and stuff, so I decided to move up to 155. (We had a name), but I can’t say. It could still happen. And I hope so.”
Ortega, No. 7 in latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie featherweight classification, most recently competed in February, where he submitted Yair Rodriguez in the third round. That result seemingly moved Ortega closer to a third shot at the featherweight belt, but he doesn’t see it that way.
There is a growing queue of options for defending champion Ilia Topuria, with a showdown against BMF champion Max Holloway and a rematch with former champion Alexander Volkanovski on the horizon. Ortega said his path to fighting for the belt is murky at best and that he doesn’t want to wait for things to go his way.
That’s why Ortega, 33, opted for a fresh start by moving up to 155 pounds, and no matter what happens against Lopes, he still sees it as the best move of his career.
“There will be no title fight for me anytime soon because of what is happening in the game,” Ortega said. “Max has a guaranteed chance at the title and so does Volkanovski. So even when Topuria fights, he fights Max. If Max wins, it will be Max vs. Max. Volk 4, which will last until next year. If Topuria wins, then it will be Topuria vs. Volk 2. So I still have to wait until next year. So, when I say that the fight for the title isn’t coming anytime soon, it’s just not because of the favors the two did, the leaps and bounds and the risks they both took.
“Volk (fought) two weeks in advance against Islam (Makhachev), and Max against (Justin) Gaethje, although it was a complete camp, he fought for the BMF belt. Both are a lot. Everyone did a lot. So for me to say that I’m there and I deserve it now is not true. Selfishly, of course – since I was a child I’ve wanted to be a champion. But you have to make peace with reality, and that’s the reality of this game right now. That’s where it’s at, that’s where it’s going, so why not just have fun with my career?”
If this truly is his featherweight swan song, Ortega enters with a realistic and prepared mindset. There was no real training camp, so when he enters the octagon at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+), it will be Ortega at his rawest, and he loves it.
“I don’t care what they say – you can’t train in two weeks,” Ortega said. “Let’s be honest: I can’t train for you for two weeks. You can’t train for me for two weeks. It’s a two-week weight cut and we’re going to go out there and literally play like it is. Let’s just start fighting. We can see as much tape as we can, but it’s still not enough. We don’t have enough time. There isn’t enough time to process anything. Just get in there, make weight, fight, and it’s crazy – and I love it. That’s what got me into the game with the love for the game.
“In the end, I thought: why not? When was the last time something came up that was exciting, that was nerve-wracking – that made all these feelings happen and you were like, ‘Bro, this is crazy’? Typically you get two months. You start training. I’ve seen the guy in my head for two, three months and I know everything about him. I watched the film and you know what can go wrong and what can go right in each position. But now it’s just, what for? Let’s just fight. We are fighters.”
For more information on the card, visit the MMA Junkie events hub to UFC 303.
