Brian Ortega doesn’t expect his fight with Diego Lopez to go all the way.
Ortega had agreed to a featherweight bout with Lopez two weeks before the scheduled date for UFC 303 in June, and was preparing to move down to lightweight when Lopez agreed to the lightweight bout after Ortega struggled to make weight, but Ortega was forced to withdraw on the day of the fight.
In an unprecedented turn of events, Dan Ige stepped up to replace Lopez at a catchweight bout at 165 pounds on four hours’ notice and lost a fascinating unanimous decision. Ortega has since paid tribute to both Ige and Lopez for agreeing to fight on four hours’ notice.
Ortega vs. Lopez has been rescheduled for Saturday’s UFC 306 at the Sphere in Las Vegas. Ortega noted that both fighters are equally matched on the ground and in the stands, and it’s like fighting a slightly different version of himself. UFC 306: O’Malley vs. Dvalishvili Saturday at 10pm ET on ESPN+. Order now!
“There are people who refuse to lose. [on the ground] “I refuse to lose in stand-up,” Ortega told Submission Radio, “so when I say that, you probably don’t know who I’m talking about. That’s why this fight is exciting. I’m going to fight like a different version of myself. Our styles are a little bit different, but it’s the same mindset.”
Ortega is also confident someone will get the finish in this fight. With seven of his eight UFC wins coming by finish, Ortega knows someone will fall to the shield and he’s not going to let it happen.
“Someone is going to get hit, I guarantee it,” Ortega said. “You know me, you’ve seen me. I’m either going to shield you or you’re going to shield me. I’m not going to go out there shielding myself.”
Ortega returned from a two-year hiatus in February, submitting Yair Rodriguez to bounce back from a two-fight slump, while Lopez is on a four-fight win streak (three of which came in the first round) since losing a unanimous decision to Movsar Evloev in what was billed as the “Fight of the Night” in his UFC debut.
