Brian Ortega Agrees With Doctor Stoppage Against Max Holloway

Nathan ZurDec 10, 2018

For four rounds, Brian Ortega took everything the champ could throw at him and kept marching forward. It took the word of the cageside physician and referee to stop “T-City” on Saturday night, but in the aftermath he agreed with their ruling.

Ortega suffered the first defeat of his professional MMA career over the weekend when he challenged Max Holloway for the featherweight belt in the main event at UFC 231. Ortega actually came into the title fight a slight betting favorite, thanks to his sensational knockout of Frankie Edgar earlier this year and possibly due to Holloway’s chronic issues with making the featherweight limit. However, Holloway showed up and put on striking masterclass, lighting up Ortega and outstriking him at a three-to-one clip. By the end of the fourth round, Ortega's face was battered, his left eye black-and-blue and swollen nearly shut, prompting the doctor to wave the fight off between rounds.

On Sunday, Ortega took to Instagram, said he was satisfied with the stoppage and thanked his fans for their support:

View this post on Instagram

Doctor stopped it and I agree. Broken nose and a broken thumb I was willing to die in there. Last night was Max’s night. I’ll be back. Thank you to everyone who’s always believed in me and supported me.

A post shared by Brian Ortega (@briantcity) on Dec 9, 2018 at 2:45pm PST

“Doctor stopped it and I agree. Broken nose and a broken thumb I was willing to die in there. Last night was Max’s night. I’ll be back. Thank you to everyone who’s always believed in me and supported me”