Undefeated records aren’t quite as important in MMA as they are in boxing but they certainly don’t hurt.
After 2017 defeats to Cody Garbrandt and Joanna Jędrzejczyk, there are currently no undefeated UFC champions but Brian Ortega hopes to change that this year.
Ortega announced himself as the next contender in the UFC’s featherweight division with an upset of Frankie Edgar in the co-main event of the UFC 222 fight card.
With unquestionable grappling credentials and seven submission victories to his name, Ortega’s Jiu-Jitsu game was expected to be his only path to victory against the former UFC lightweight champion, who had never been finished in his UFC career before Saturday night.
IT IS ALL OVER! 😱
Brian Ortega becomes the first UFC fighter to finish Frankie Edgar!
That uppercut 💥💥💥
📺 BT Sport 2 HD pic.twitter.com/pIvQN2Bzy7
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) March 4, 2018
Ortega stepped up on short notice to face Edgar following an injury to 145lbs champion Max Holloway and he proved himself a worthy challenger for Holloway’s featherweight crown.
Barring a couple of clinches, ‘T-City’ didn’t utilise his grappling whatsoever against Edgar in what was a back-and-forth first round but he did show off vastly improved striking by overwhelming his opponent with 30 seconds to go in the opening frame.
A left elbow, followed by a roundhouse kick, forced ‘The Answer’ to backpedal before several Ortega uppercuts sent Edgar to his back and with his wits clearly not about him, Edgar was saved from any unnecessary damage by referee Jason Herzog.
Just look at what Ortega did to Edgar’s face. The man is an animal.
Gahhhhhhh
what Brian Ortega did to Frankie Edgar's face pic.twitter.com/yDGHbnKhxL
— Phil Murphy © (@Phil_Sports) March 4, 2018
It looks like we’re going to get Holloway vs. Ortega for 145lbs glory and that makes for one of the most fascinating championship match-ups of 2018.
