Why Is Brian Ortega vs Diego Lopes Happening at 155 Lbs? Serious Health Issues Revealed Behind FW Star’s Move to Lightweight at UFC 303

The changes in UFC 303 continue to unfold, with a significant shift occurring in the co-main event. Initially slated as a featherweight matchup between Brian Ortega and Diego Lopes, the bout has been redirected to the lightweight division at 155 pounds. This alteration was announced just before Friday morning’s weigh-ins, indicating a last-minute adjustment to the fight card.

Speaking on the same, the veteran MMA reporter Ariel Helwani chimed in with some inside information as he explained the reasoning behind Brian Ortega‘s move to a heavier weight class.

Is Brian Ortega the reason behind the fight moving to 155 lbs?

UFC 303 has been a fight card in flux. It all started with a failed test by Khalil Rountree Jr, throwing the co-main event into disarray. Then, a toe injury to Conor McGregor forced him out of the scheduled fight against Michael Chandler while Jamahal Hill also had to withdraw from the co-main fight because of injury concerns. Now, Brian Ortega’s inability to hit the featherweight class weight added to the UFC’s misery but Dana White & Co. managed to save the card.

According to Ariel Helwani, Brian Ortega had already hinted in previous interviews that he was preparing to move up to lightweight. Suddenly, UFC 303 offered him a featherweight opportunity on short notice. However, Ortega wasn’t in a position to make the significant weight cut.

Helwani explained in a post on his Instagram handle, “It’s hard to pump the brakes on the bulking-up process. This is what I am told: at about 3:30 am local time, Lopez and his team got a call saying that Ortega was weighing 151 pounds, wouldn’t be able to make it to 146, and it was either take the fight at 155 or the fight was off. He had to rehydrate, so Lopez and his team decided to take it at 155.”

Despite Ortega’s inability to make the weight, Diego Lopes and his team readily agreed to the proposed switch to lightweight. Both fighters then put on extra weight needed, successfully hitting the 155-pound mark at the weigh-in.

Official weigh-in results for Brian Ortega and Diego Lopes

A late shakeup hit the co-main event at UFC 303 during weigh-ins at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Jon Anik announced the originally planned featherweight clash between Brian Oretega and Diego Lopes would now be contested at lightweight. Both fighters successfully hit the 155-pound mark, marking their UFC debuts in the new weight class.

Previously, Ortega and Lopes had exclusively competed in the featherweight division throughout their careers with the promotion. However, we shouldn’t forget that the Brian Ortega vs. Diego Lopes matchup was added to the UFC 303 card just two weeks ago after Jamahal Hill withdrew from the event because of injury.

This led the UFC to reshuffle the fight card, placing Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prohazka as the main event and Ortega vs. Lopes as the new co-main event. Do you think both fighters, Brian Ortega and Diego Lopes, can deliver an astonishing fight in their new weight division as they did in the featherweight class? Comment your thoughts below.