An illness forced Brian Ortega to withdraw Saturday hours before his scheduled fight with Diego Lopes in the co-main event at UFC 303. Dan Ige was called in as the replacement. UFC President Dana White said the bout likely would have been called off if Ige hadn’t been available.
Featherweight fighters Brian Ortega, left, and Diego Lopes face off during a UFC 303 news conference Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Las Vegas . LAS VEGAS — An illness forced Brian Ortega to withdraw Saturday hours before his scheduled fight with Diego Lopes in the co-main event at UFC 303, and Dan Ige was called in as the replacement.
UFC President Dana White said the bout likely would have been called off if Ige hadn’t been available.The match is the warm-up bout to the main event between light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira and top-ranked challenger Jiri Prochazka. White said Ortega was running a fever and wasn’t ready to go on. Ige, who is from Honolulu but trains in Las Vegas, already was in town preparing for another fight.White joked that Ige likely was sitting on his couch about to order the pay-per-view when he got the call.
Jeff Mullen, executive director of the Nevada Athletic Commission, told ESPN that because Ige fought Feb. 10 in Las Vegas, that made the process smoother to get him approved. “We already had his medicals and all his requirements completed,” Mullen said. “It was a perfectly approved matchup. I checked with the attorneys to make sure everything was in order.”
HI State Wire CA State Wire NV State Wire S Las Vegas Sports
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Brian Ortega out of UFC 303; Dan Ige late fill-in vs. Diego LopesBrian Ortega has pulled out of Saturday's fight against Diego Lopes and will be replaced by Dan Ige, who was not scheduled to compete on the card.
Read more »
Dan Ige Making Unprecedented Move at UFC 303Ige is replacing Brian Ortega–on fight night–to take on Diego Lopes
Read more »
UFC 303 News: Brian Ortega Makes Major Decision on His Fighting FutureExpect the former UFC featherweight title challenger to switch things up.
Read more »
UFC 303 Results: UFC Rising Star Scores Amazing 19-Second KOSince 2011, I have covered video games and combat sports. I've written for Bleacher Report, The Ring, Mic and co-founded the combat sports YouTube channel The Fight Guys. I've also run and operated the Unique Mazique YouTube channel since 2009.
Read more »
Rising UFC Star Payton Talbott KO's Opponent in 20 Seconds at UFC 303The UFC has a star on its hands.
Read more »
UFC 303 -- How Alex Pereira stepped up once again for the UFCPereira steps in for the UFC once again, this time in a rematch against Jiri Procházka at UFC 303. Can 'Poatan' create one of the more unique legacies in MMA history?
Read more »