Getty Brian Ortega and Max Holloway
Top-ranked UFC featherweight Brian Ortega is on the comeback trail months following his shoulder surgery. And once he’s ready to return, he’s prepared to “humble” Ilia Topuria if he has to.
The Schmo recently caught up with Ortega and “T-City” revealed that he only had around one month left of rehabilitation before he could begin going “full blast” in the gym. The American had his shoulder operated on shortly after his last Octagon appearance — he fought Yair Rodriguez as the headlining act of the UFC’s return to ABC in July, and he blew his shoulder out during the first round, causing the fight to end.
Fast forward eight months and the No. 3-ranked featherweight is hungry to get back to action.
“I love it, man,” Ortega said about fighting. “I do love doing what I do, going in there and leaving your heart out there — putting [on] a show for every single one of those fans that really love fighting and the art of it, and the beauty of the violence. So, I’m excited. I can’t wait to be back. Soon.”
Ortega Confirmed His Shoulder Rehab Is Coming to a Close
Ortega is a two-time UFC title challenger with a professional mixed martial arts record of 15-3 with one no-contest. He boasts notable wins over the likes of ex-UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, fellow ex-title challenger Chan Sung Jung and 145-pound veteran Cub Swanson.
“Right now, I’ve got three weeks left of kind of just working through these processes, of these training scenarios and things that I’m doing right now,” Ortega said. “Three weeks to a month is finally what they’re giving me to say, ‘Hey man, you can finally just train full blast.’ That’s it. So, I’ve got a month left of that.”
Oretega Is Willing to Fight Topuria if That’s What Offered to Him
Ortega was asked about fighting a man who has recently called him out, No. 9 Topuria. In short, T-City didn’t show much interest in competing against the lower-ranked 145-pound contender. But, he also made it clear that he’ll step inside the Octagon against anyone, including “El Matador.”
“Obviously, I see people like Topuria calling me out,” Ortega said. “Constantly I see it now. Two things come to mind. One, I’ve never backed down to any fighter, right? I’ve fought the best of the best. I’ve fought the people that you wish you could fight yet. So, that’s one thing.
“Two is I’m not even able to fight. So, let me get back on my s***. Let me get back to training and that’s it. I’ll gladly humble someone if I have to. And once they’ve earned their way up to where I’m at, then you can come join me. But, you can’t use your mouth to come up here.
“This is the fighting world. You can only do so much with your mouth… you’re gonna have to fight. So, I know he has a fight lined up. Good for him. And after if he earns his way up, let’s do it. Anyone that my manager says that we gotta do it with, or we gotta fight or whatever, then that’s what it is. So, I’m ready. I’ve never backed out of any fight and I’m excited to come back.”
Topuria hasn’t been officially linked to an opponent. He’s coming off a career win over Bryce Mitchell in December, turning in a “Performance of the Night” campaign en route to a second-round submission victory at UFC 282.