Almost one year after the pair were initially scheduled to meet, Brian Ortega and Chan-sung Jung will headline UFC Fight Night 180 at the Flash Forum on Yas Island this Saturday.
Abu Dhabi hasn’t let fans down in providing entertainment as an alternative venue due to the coronavirus pandemic, and a five-round frenzy between these two potential featherweight title contenders shouldn’t disappoint.
Ortega and “The Korean Zombie” share bad blood after the former slapped rapper Jay Park—who has acted as a translator for Jung—at UFC 248, via TMZ:
“T-City” hasn’t fought since December due to a string of injuries and returns to the Octagon Saturday as +150 underdog with Caesars. New Jersey customers can bank on Jung as -170 favorite, a fitting price considering the knockout artist looks motivated to get his revenge.
Ortega vs. Jung Odds Predictions
Brian Ortega: +150
Chan Sung Jung: -170
UFC Fight Night 180 Info
Date: Saturday, October 17
Venue: Flash Forum, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Viewing Info: ESPN/ESPN2, ESPN+, UFC Fight Pass
Card Schedule/Times
Prelims: 4 p.m. ET (9 p.m. BST)
Main Card: 7 p.m. ET (12 a.m. BST)
Ortega (14-1-1) suffered the first defeat of his career the last time he stepped into the cage, losing a title matchup to then-featherweight champion Max Holloway via doctor’s stoppage:
UFC president Dana White has confirmed the winner of this bout will be the next to get a shot at incumbent champion Alexander Volkanovski, providing yet more reason to impress on Fight Island.
Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt Ortega holds a significant advantage over his opponent when it comes to the ground game, but Korean Zombie—whose last nine wins have each come via a finish—is the superior striker by a wide margin. Jung’s coach, Eddie Cha, recently told BJPenn.com his star will clinch the finish “if Korean Zombie can hit Brian Ortega a third of what Max (Holloway) did,” and the statistics lie firmly in their favor, per MMA By The Numbers:
Jung has never been submitted in his career, and it’s a significant blow for Ortega that his jiu jitsu coach, Rener Gracie, was prevented from travelling to Abu Dhabi after testing positive for COVID-19, per ESPN’s Marc Raimondi.
Ortega has more experience fighting into the four and five-round territory than his next opponent, but Jung’s propensity to finish fights early doesn’t mean he isn’t capable of lasting 25 minutes. New Jersey bettors can expect his precision striking to take even more effect in those latter stages and Ortega to suffer a second straight defeat by KO/TKO.
