Fans who were excited for Brian Ortega to take on Chan Sung Jung — a.k.a. the Korean Zombie — at UFC Fight Night in Busan, South Korea will be disappointed to hear that Ortega will no longer be able to participate in the fight, as first reported by ESPN.
Ortega revealed in a Twitter post that he suffered a torn ACL in training. Ortega also said that the tear is only partial and that he expects to be back to “100%” in a maximum of three months. The fighter said he originally considered pushing through the injury as to not let down his fans and opponent, but given that risking a full tear could keep him out of the Octagon for a full year, he opted to play it safe.
Fans of Ortega were eager to see him back in action. His last fight — the first loss of his career — took place against Max Holloway last December. Injuries have kept him sidelined in 2019, and now, it will be even longer before we see him return to fighting.
A replacement for Ortega hasn’t yet been announced, but Frankie Edgar has reportedly verbally agreed to step in against the Zombie.
