Brian Ortega Reacts to UFC 303 Withdrawal: 'My Body Gave Out on Me'

Brian Ortega did everything he could to make it to fight night at UFC 303 . Unfortunately, his body didn’t cooperate.

Ortega agreed to face Diego Lopes on short notice as part of a the promotion’s renovation of the UFC 303 card. The bout was initially slated for 145 pounds, but when Ortega began to struggle with his weight cut, he and his opponent agreed to move the bout to lightweight. Ultimately, Ortega developed a fever on the day of the fight and was forced to withdraw hours before the UFC 303 co-main event.

On Wednesday, “T-City” released a statement addressing the situation.

“Come fight week, I felt off and I didn’t feel right. I thought it was just the residual effects from the [weight] cut. I was 178 pounds when I accepted this fight on 15 days’ notice,” Ortega wrote on Instagram. “Thursday night after seven straight hours, I could not break 151 pounds. Later, I would find out that I was battling a fever and I could not break into the final five pounds as my body started to shut down.

“Rather than risking huge health consequences, and possibly calling the fight off, thankfully we were able to move the weight to 155. At weigh-ins, I still felt off but I was sure it would go away after I rehydrated and ate. Later on that night, I still felt off and was suffering from cold sweats and no sleep. Finally, I feel asleep at 6 a.m. Saturday morning and woke up at 1 p.m. hoping to feel better. I could not keep any food or water down nor could I stand up to use the restroom.

“I struggled with my own ego, got on a call with Tiki [Ghosn] and Hunter [Campbell], and I made the decision to call off the fight. I dared to do something crazy for the love of fighting but I got sick and my body gave out on me. I want to give the fans and my opponents my best performance every time I step into the cage.”

After Ortega pulled out of the fight, Dan Ige stepped in on just a few hours’ notice to save the UFC 303 co-headliner in a virtually unprecedented move. Lopse would go on to win a unanimous decision to cap off a memorable evening.

While it’s unclear if the UFC will attempt to rebook Lopes vs. Ortega, the former featherweight title challenger made sure to pay his respects to his would-be opponent.

“Diego Lopes, I can only imagine what went off on your side, you have nothing but my respect and I’ll talk to Hunter and and Tiki and make this right by you,” Ortega wrote. “To the UFC, Dana [White], Hunter and the fans, thank you for having my back.”