Brian Ortega wasn’t a big fan of his game plan for Diego Lopes.
The battle-tested UFC title challenger who’s fought Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway was almost knocked out for the first time in his career last year at the Sphere.
Following a submission win over Yair Rodriguez, Ortega had hoped to return to title contention at UFC 306, where he faced off against streaking contender Diego Lopes.
Lopes wasted no time in taking the fight to Ortega, nearly finishing him with strikes in the opening round. The durable Ortega was able to stay on his feet and survived to see the distance.
Ortega lost to Lopes via unanimous decision and reflected on the near-finish months later.
Brian Ortega says his game plan for Diego Lopes almost got him knocked out at UFC 306
The high point of the featherweight fight came in the first 30 seconds of round 1, when Lopes landed a two-punch combo on Ortega’s chin to visibly stun him.
A lot was made of the highlight, with some fans believing the second punch that Lopes landed had woken up an already unconscious Ortega.
“He caught me pretty good, that b—–,” Ortega said of Lopes on Paddy Pimblett’s Chattin’ Pony Podcast.
“He got me good.
“I believe the meme, bro. I think that second [punch] one woke me up,” Ortega admitted.
“I gotta humble myself and be honest. I remember getting hit—I didn’t like the idea of our game plan,” Ortega said of fighting Lopes.
“It was like, put pressure on them. I was like, yo, the guy has a lot of first round KOs. I don’t know if putting pressure on him off the bat is a good idea…
“They’re like, hey bro, trust me. And I was like, alright. F— it.
“I was like, bro, he seems to kinda gas out after the first. He slows down a little bit. I went in there. It was like, [punch noises].
“I was like, son of a b—-. I already knew,” Ortega said.
Brian Ortega says Diego Lopes fight was a game of catch-up
After a wake-up call in the first round, Ortega did his best to catch up to Lopes in rounds 2 and 3.
Ortega found most of his success in the final round but was still outlanded by Lopes on the feet.
“It’s like a race,” Ortega said of fighting after getting dropped in the first 30 seconds.
“It’s like you trip when they say go and now you have to catch up for the rest of the fight. That’s what it felt like the whole night.
“Plus, I usually do five rounds. In the fourth and the fifth, I kinda come alive a little bit better. Three rounds went like this [fast], and I was like, yo, what the f—?”
Ortega’s last five fights prior to Lopes were scheduled for five rounds.
Brian Ortega is set to return against former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling in the three-round co-main event of UFC Shanghai on Aug. 23.