CALGARY, Alberta — When Brian Ortega declined a short-notice opponent at UFC 226, there was much discussion about whether that decision may have hurt his standing with the promotion and his image with the fans.
The opponent in question, Jeremy Stephens, thinks Ortega made a bad choice for one simple reason: That might have been Ortega’s best chance to beat the longtime featherweight standout.
“That’s something that he’s had to deal with, the fans, the reaction,” Stephens said at a scrum following his open workout for UFC on FOX 30 here at The Palace Theatre.