Brian Ortega gives update on injury, still wants “Korean Zombie” fight
Brian Ortega will not fight in 2019 after having to pull out of his UFC Busan main event scrap against Chan Sung Jung.
Ortega said he tore his ACL. Yet, he revealed he will not need surgery so he is focusing on recovery and getting back into the Octagon soon.
“I’m already doing things on it,” Ortega said on the UFC Unfiltered podcast (via MMA Junkie). “They said two more months of rehab. I’ve been rehabbing everyday. And right now I’m working. I’m pretty much doing everything I used to do but around the injury. While I’m rehabbing the injury, I’m still keeping up my same program. I’m still eating the same things. I’m still working out – like, I’m still moving. The other day I woke up at 165 still, like my body’s ready for war.”
For Brian Ortega, he is looking at the featherweight division and knows there are still interesting fights for him. He still wants the “Korean Zombie” fight or possibly scrapping Zabit Magomedsharipov.
“I think so, I think Korean’s still in the radar,” Ortega said. “There’s a couple of guys out there that pretty much – if Max and Alex Volkanovski are going to rematch each other. Then it’s trying to decide who’s the next guy that fans and Dana White want to see me fight in order for me to climb my way back up and prove myself again.”
“I know you have Zabit [Magomedsharipov] up there, you have ‘Korean Zombie’ right there, and everyone else is – Jose Aldo and Frankie moved down pretty much at ’35 besides him coming to save this card. So it’s really just sitting there and weighing your options. And, looking at who is the right fight to go forward and get after it.”
In the end, Brian Ortega is just focusing on his recovery and is planning a big return in 2020.
