Brian Ortega | UFC Betting Sites - The Best MMA Online Bookies

Max Holloway ‘Can’t Wait’ To Fight Brian Ortega

Originally, UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway was scheduled to defend his 145-pound title against Frankie Edgar in the main event of UFC 222 earlier this month, but he was forced to withdraw due to injury. Then, late replacement Brian Ortega ended up brutally knocking out Edgar, earning him a title fight against Holloway in the […]

The post Max Holloway ‘Can’t Wait’ To Fight Brian Ortega appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Then, late replacement Brian Ortega ended up brutally knocking out Edgar, earning him a title fight against Holloway in the process – a fight that “Blessed” is looking forward to:

“My interest in fighting him: I’m very intrigued,” Holloway told MMAjunkie. “I can’t wait to fight. I love fighting and I love competition. You want to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. The best is ‘Blessed,’ and right now he’s saying and people are saying he’s the one. I can’t wait. We’ll find out.”

Since entering the UFC in July 2014, Ortega has finished every opponent put in front of him, clearly establishing himself as the No. 1 contender. And while some may shy away from a red hot surging contender, Holloway is drawn to a challenge:

“The Hawaiians had history with Frankie, but then Ortega came out and did his thing,” Holloway said. “When people see danger, they like to walk away. When I see danger, I want to take a peek. When you put us in a room and there’s a red button that says, ‘Don’t press.’ I’m going to go over there and press the damn button and see what happens. That’s just the kind of person I am. He proved to the world why he’s the No. 1 contender. Looks like I’ve got a new cupcake flavor, so I’m excited. I like horchata, so I can get that horchata flavor – it’s delicious.”

With Holloway being 26-years-old and Ortega being 27-years-old, both men are in their primes and due to their respective win streaks, a fight between the two is one of the biggest the UFC could put on, which Holloway is well aware of:

“I think this fight is huge,” Holloway said. “He’s got a lot of fans. It’s exciting. I think it’s a huge fight. I think people are talking more about this one than the Frankie one. It’s cool; this is finally the first fight that I didn’t watch growing up. Everyone is telling me he’s the future, but I’m right here. I’m the present.”

And while he’s convinced that he’s the ‘present’, many are riding high on the Ortega train, although “Blessed” isn’t too concerned with the doubters:

“Last year I was the GOAT featherweight, now this year I’m a nobody and a guy who is going to lose my belt because time passed me,” Holloway said. “But last year was three months ago. These guys think they’re going to beat me and it’s just another reason why I’m going to prove I’m the best to do it. These are the kind of fights I want. I want the fights people think it’s challenging. And it is challenging. Then when I go out there it’s like, ‘Wow.’ Keep doubting. It’s only more hype for me when I go out there and do my thing.”

The post Max Holloway ‘Can’t Wait’ To Fight Brian Ortega appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Max Holloway: Brian Ortega May Be The Future, But I’m The Present

UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway looks set to defend his title against #1 UFC featherweight Brian Ortega this summer. Brian Ortega, who now holds an impressive record of 14-0 in the UFC, stunned the mixed martial arts world when he defeated UFC …

The post Max Holloway: Brian Ortega May Be The Future, But I’m The Present appeared first on MMA News.

Max Holloway: Brian Ortega May Be The Future, But I’m The Present

The post Max Holloway: Brian Ortega May Be The Future, But I’m The Present appeared first on MMA News.

Six Future Stars The UFC Can’t Afford To Miss On

Each year, a new class of prospects catch the attention of fight fans. With Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey, the biggest stars of the past few years – and perhaps ever – now gone from the sport for the time being, the UFC is in a transitionary period as Endeavor attempts to build new dependable […]

The post Six Future Stars The UFC Can’t Afford To Miss On appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Each year, a new class of prospects catch the attention of fight fans.

With Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey, the biggest stars of the past few years – and perhaps ever – now gone from the sport for the time being, the UFC is in a transitionary period as Endeavor attempts to build new dependable pay-per-view draws.

Fighters like Sage Northcutt and Paige VanZant initially made a big impact and the expectations were high, but not all prospects pan out in the cage. Those once-hyped prospects are still around, but they’ve given way to a new crop of potential future stars who are performing in the cage in addition to having their own highly marketable qualities.

So the UFC has potential stars in their midst, but with PPV sales slumping as the promotion seems to be waiting around for McGregor to return, the time is now for them to build for the future as they cannot afford more down years by failing to promote their best chances at box office success.

With the majority of a new year of MMA ahead of us, let’s take a look at six future stars the UFC simply can’t afford to miss promoting throughout this year.

6. Sean O’Malley

O’Malley captured UFC president Dana White’s attention and the exec quickly signed him.

‘Sugar’ certainly has delivered thus far, winning both of his UFC fights with stylish striking and adept grappling.

He even won his last fight after severely damaging his leg in the third round. With his charisma and fighting style, it’s no wonder the company wants to push this kid into star territory.

As O’Malley works his way up the bantamweight division, he’s certainly a fighter to watch out for. At just 23 years old, the Montana native could be a star in a post-McGregor world.

But let’s see him against a step up in competition before the hype train really starts to start. A fight against Rob Font or Thomas Almeida is a perfect test to really see where O’Malley is at, and if he wins that, the UFC should seriously consider pushing his promotion into high gear.

The post Six Future Stars The UFC Can’t Afford To Miss On appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Coach: Conor McGregor ‘Puts Max Holloway Away’ In Rematch

Conor McGregor is still on the sidelines reaping the monetary windfall of his boxing match with Floyd Mayweather last year, but his longtime striking coach is still speculating about a fight that’s most likely far off. McGregor has been linked to a rematch with Mayweather in the UFC octagon, but his most likely return bout […]

The post Coach: Conor McGregor ‘Puts Max Holloway Away’ In Rematch appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

McGregor has been linked to a rematch with Mayweather in the UFC octagon, but his most likely return bout (at least hopefully) is an awaited title unification bout with the winner of April 7’s Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov UFC 223 main event.

With featherweight champion Max Holloway, whom McGregor outlasted by unanimous decision at 2013’s UFC Fight Night 26, apparently owning the inactive ‘Notorious’ on social media as of late, McGregor’s longtime striking coach Owen Roddy discussed a potential rematch with ‘Blessed’ during a recent spot on Submission Radio (transcribed by MMA Fighting) and offered a less-than-surprising prediction.

According to Roddy, Holloway, who won the featherweight title from legendary champion Jose Aldo last June and defended it against him again last December, is now a bit overconfident in his skills and would ‘go to sleep’ were he to face McGregor again:

“I think Conor would probably put Max away,” Roddy said. “I think Max would probably be way more confident in his ability, and if you go in there a little bit overconfident with Conor you’re gonna go to sleep. Whereas, he was a little bit more… he stood back in the first fight — and obviously Conor injured himself, he couldn’t put him away — but yeah, I think it would be a great fight.

“Max has done, he’s done so well since the Conor fight. He’s been on a tear, and even John Kavanagh said it back in the day, he called that Max would have been the next champion after that fight with Conor. You could see it in Max, and I think everyone sees it. He’s a great fighter, but I think Conor’s on another level compared to him as well.”

conor mcgregor ufc 178 — Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

McGregor was briefly linked to a supposed short-notice bout with Franke Edgar after Holloway was forced out of March 3’s UFC 222 with a leg injury, but the validity of him offering his services at the last minute was disputed by Edgar’s manager Al Abdel-Aziz, who claimed McGregor wanted the UFC to book him for a new 165-pound belt in order to compete on the card.

Roddy disputed that and said McGregor was excited to potentially fight Edgar, and indeed the infamous Irish superstar has claimed he will return to fight again because he’s ‘the best.’

With many doubting – and growing extremely tired of – his boasts as his streak without a title defense pushes closer to three years, McGregor and his camp seemingly need to give fans something of substance rather than endless interviews claiming he would beat this or that top contender.

As Dana White loves to say, we’ll see what happens.

The post Coach: Conor McGregor ‘Puts Max Holloway Away’ In Rematch appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Brian Ortega on Lightweight Move: We Need The Perfect Match-up

Brian Ortega isn’t rushing to move up to 155 pounds. It’s easy to see why as Ortega is coming off a stunning first-round knockout victory over Frankie Edgar at UFC 222. Edgar had never been finished before and “T-City” became th…

The post Brian Ortega on Lightweight Move: We Need The Perfect Match-up appeared first on MMA News.