Former two-time UFC featherweight title challenger, Brian “T-City” Ortega, will take on the former interim featherweight champion, Yair Rodriguez, at UFC Fight Night 237 in Mexico. Ortega and Rodriguez had fought back in July of 2022, wherein “El Panthera” seized the win after Ortega suffered an injury during a grappling exchange late into the first round.

“T-City” was out of action for over a year after suffering the injury. However, during a recent interview with TMZ Sports, Ortega revealed another reason for him being out of action for as long as he was.

Brian Ortega opens up on why he wasn’t competing for over a year

During a recent interview with TMZ, the featherweight contender was asked if he would go back into title contention if he won against Rodriguez. Despite that being a likely scenario, Ortega revealed, “Right, we would think and then also there’s politics so there’s what I would think and then there’s what it is. So let’s, I rather not get ahead of myself, right.”

However, despite the long layoff, “T-City” revealed the layoff turned out to be quite peaceful. He explained how he had been at war for most of his life, given that he joined the UFC almost a decade ago in July 2014.

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Ortega explained why he wasn’t worried about coming off of a layoff given this wasn’t the first time where he had to take a long layoff after an injury. He said, “And to be out, it’s not the first surgery I had or you know, I’ve had a couple of them in my career. It’s not the first time setup but it’s the first time I sat out and stayed in isolation. And that’s what the key was for this one.”

Brian Ortega, despite his long layoff, doesn’t seem too worried about his rematch against Yair Rodriguez. Given that fighters generally suffer from ring rust after long layoffs, so why isn’t “T-City” worried about the layoff?

“T-City” reveals how he benefited from the layoff

Most fighters suffer from a long layoff, however, Brian Ortega seems to believe that he would benefit from the layoffs. During an interview with ESPN MMA with Megan Olivi, Ortega revealed how he used his time off from the octagon to his advantage.

Yair Rodriguez Losses: Who Has ‘El Pantera’ Lost to in His UFC Career?

During the interview, “T-City” stated, “I think It’s good, right, because I got time to study a lot of tapes, a lot of things that he does, when he does it, how he does it when he gets creative, when he decides to kind of buckle down. So there is a just kind of like a whole time to kind of focus and kind of prep for him better than I did in the first camp.”

Do you guys think ring rust won’t affect Brian Ortega? Or do you believe that he will be able to get back on the winning streak later this evening? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

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