Lopes beats Dan Ige, the late replacement for Brian Ortega in UFC 303
Diego Lopes, who replaced Dan Ige in the co-main fight of UFC 303 on Saturday, won by unanimous decision after Brian Ortega withdrawn.
By Andreas Hale
Jun 30, 2024 01:46 AM
LAS VEGAS — In an unprecedented move, Brian Ortega was forced to withdraw from his UFC 303 co-main event fight with Diego Lopes due to illness and was replaced by Dan Ige , who was not scheduled to compete on the card.
Lopes won the fight unanimously (29-28-29-28).
It was the first time a fighter replaced another the day of the fight without weighing-in the previous day. Ige, who attended the T-Mobile Arena fight, weighed 164.5 pounds hours before it began, while Lopes was 161.5 pounds. Both parties agreed quickly to have the fight take place and continue a fight card that was already rife with injuries.
Ige, in an interview with the Octagon after Saturday’s match, said: “It does not matter. Eight weeks, six months, four months, four hours.” “It doesn’t matter. This is my life. This is what I live for. “I get to do what I enjoy every day.”
Ige sent a message directly to UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell, at 4:18 pm, just three hours before the main event.
The message said: “Hello Hunter, I have been in camp for three months.” “I am the healthiest that I have ever been. I can fight him tonight and beat. Legends are born here. I’m in. I’m ready. I’m in great shape. “Please don’t steal this opportunity from me.”
The UFC scrambled to find a replacement for McGregor after his broken toe forced McGregor to withdraw from the main event with Michael Chandler less than two weeks prior to the event. Ortega struggled to lose weight for his scheduled featherweight bout at 145 lbs. He negotiated to bump up the fight to lightweight (155 lbs) on Friday morning.
Ortega appeared to be ill at the official weigh in on Friday morning. Reports began to circulate that he had an illness while UFC 303 took place.
Ige was competing for the first since he defeated Andre fili in February by knockout.