UFC featherweight fan favorite Diego Lopes has his sights set on two options for his expected matchup at the Sphere this September.
Lopes’ outing at this past weekend’s UFC 303 pay-per-view event was among the biggest stories throughout International Fight Week, as he co-headlined in incredible circumstances.
After answering a short-notice call to face Brian Ortega on the June 29 card following the original co-main event falling through, the Mexican-based Brazilian stepped up once again when “T-City” couldn’t make the featherweight limit last Friday morning.
On fight day, however, Lopes found himself back on the scales, this time to weigh in for a 165-pound catchweight contest against Dan Ige. That came about after Ortega was struck by illness hours before UFC 303.
Lopes ultimately emerged victorious over his late-notice replacement opponent, grinding out a unanimous decision victory across three rounds of action inside Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena.
Pre-fight, Lopes had already announced his intention to make the turnaround to fight at the Sphere in September. And having gone above and beyond last week, it would appear that the UFC is unsurprisingly set to grant that wish…
Lopes Calls For Rescheduled Ortega Fight Or Volkanovski Clash At The Sphere
During a backstage media scrum at T-Mobile Arena, Lopes reflected on his tumultuous fight week and victorious performance at UFC 303 while in conversation with reporters.
Responding to a question regarding his next fight from Caroline Pearce of TNT Sports, the Mexican-based Brazilian reiterated his plan to make the walk inside the Sphere for Riyadh Season Noche UFC.
And the surging featherweight also had a couple of opponents in mind…
“I would really love to fight on the Sphere (card). If you think about this, it’s such a special day, Mexican Independence Day weekend. I live in Mexico. It would be amazing to fight,” Lopes said. “They could just basically reschedule the fight against Ortega, I’d love that.
“If that’s not available, I’d love to have a fight against Alexander Volkanovski. I think that would be a great fight as well,” Lopes continued. “I think we need to sit down with the UFC and check what the plans are, but I think it should be somebody in the top five that I should be fighting with.”
When quizzed on the possibility of rescheduling Ortega vs. Lopes for the September 14 event during his post-event press conference, UFC CEO Dana White noted that the promotion needs to gauge “T-City’s” availability and plans.
Volkanovski, meanwhile, has been taking a break from competition ever since losing the featherweight title in violent fashion against Ilia Topuria in February.
While he’s been firm in stating that the gold will be on the line in his comeback fight, perhaps the allure of the Sphere could tempt the Australian to do battle with one of the division’s fastest-rising names.
Came out on top against all odds
@DiegoLopesMMA put on a tremendous performance last night despite the adversity! #UFC303 pic.twitter.com/uDQpYCiYtl
— UFC (@ufc) June 30, 2024
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