Brian Ortega and Yair Rodriguez have a big fight on their hands Saturday, but is a UFC featherweight title shot in range?
Brian Ortega and Yair Rodriguez have a big fight on their hands Saturday.
Former featherweight title challenger Ortega (15-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) and Rodriguez (13-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) fight in the UFC on ABC 3 main event in Elmont, N.Y., and both are coming off losses.
Ortega’s loss came 10 months ago to 145-pound champion Alexander Volkanovski, which was his second title shot. Rodriguez lost to former champ Max Holloway this past November.
But is it possible the winner could leapfrog the man most think should be next for Volkanovski, Josh Emmett? Emmett has a five-fight winning streak with three post-fight bonuses in that stretch. Less than a month ago, he beat Calvin Kattar handily and called for a title shot.
We’ve seen the UFC pass on the seemingly obvious before, though. So could Ortega or Rodriguez find a title shot with just one win? Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Mike Bohn, Nolan King and Danny Segura tackle that subject.
Check out their discussion in the video above, and don’t miss this week’s full episode below.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 3.
