Prior to Saturday night, the last time Brian
Ortega was in the Octagon, he was thoroughly battered and
outclassed by then featherweight champion in the UFC 231 headliner
in December 2018.
Nearly two years later, “T-City” returned to the Octagon with a new
look – his trademark locks were shaved off – and a much more
refined set of skills. The latter allowed him to capture a
clear-cut unanimous decision triumph over Chan Sung
Jung in the UFC Fight Night 180 headliner at the Flash Forum in
Abu Dhabi, a victory that should earn Ortega a shot a reigning
145-pound king Alexander
Volkanovski.
“The Korean Zombie” never got going, as he had no answer for
Ortega’s blend of striking, movement and takedowns over the course
of their 25-minute bout. According to Ortega, the improvements he
displayed against Jung are just the beginning.
“It feels great. This is a new evolution of what I have to bring to
the table,” Ortega said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference.
“This is barely Phase 1 though. Me and this team is brand new. This
is our first date and it’s going great. We have a full game plan, a
full strategy for my entire career and this was a great testament
and trust for me to have on them.”
Ortega credited his performance in part to preparation that he has
lacked in the past, along with a renewed focus on sticking with the
game plan.
“This is the first time I actually stuck to a game plan,” he said.
“Usually I abort game plan, but we never really had one to begin
with, we’d kinda make a semi-one up, but this is the first time
I’ve ever had a true game plan, had MMA coaches, not just this
coach that coach. I’ll do what I have to do, in this sport you have
to take these chances.”
Ortega also relished the opportunity to prove the doubters wrong.
The bandwagon was empty after the loss to Holloway, and his
extended absence didn’t allow room for optimism.
“I was counted out. I understand, you leave the game for two years,
you get counted out,” he said. “I’m here to remind everyone. It
felt great to have this happen again, having your hand raised at
this level is important, it’s the number one thing.”
The other noteworthy difference in Ortega was his hair, or lack
thereof. The 29-year-old donated his trademark locks to charity,
but he doesn’t plan on making the clean-shaven look a permanent
thing.
“I’m growing my hair back. My hair is growing back,” Ortega said.
“I can’t stay bald, brother.”
“… I do miss my looks with it, I’m not going to lie. My looks, I
miss them. But I was cutting weight and I was like, ‘Bro, I feel
like s—t and there’s some people that are going through some things
right now.’ I’ve visited countless children hospitals and met a lot
of kids who are sick with cancer right now. The stories that I saw
will always stay with me,” he added. “Walking in rooms playing
tough, making them smile, and then walking out and crying your
tears out because you know these stories.
“I was suffering during the weight cut and I haven’t had a weight
cut in two years. So while I was suffering, I was like, ‘Man, I
have to deal with this for a little bit. Some people don’t have
that choice. They have to deal with it every day.’ I was talking
about it while cutting weight and I was like, ‘Man, I don’t know
how people lose weight and go through all these therapies.’ Maybe I
was in my feelings and I got emotional while cutting weight, but I
was like, ‘Go get me the clippers right now. Get me the frickin’
clippers right now.’ And they were like, ‘No, relax, Brian. Relax.’
I had to fight my homies. I was like, ‘Get me the f—ing clippers
right now,’ and I just went for it. Just went straight for it. And
I was like, ‘We’re going to donate this. That’s it. It’s
done.’”