Thiago Tavares and Brian Ortega had a bloody battle in “The Big Easy.” | Photo: Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com
On a memorable UFC Fight Night card that featured 10 finishes among its 12 bouts, no scrap stood out more than Brian Ortega’s raucous featherweight encounter with Thiago Tavares.
Ortega and Tavares earned $50,000 “Fight of the Night” paychecks for their battle at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans on Saturday, which Ortega won via technical knockout 4:10 into the final frame. While Tavares did plenty of good work with takedowns and ground-and-pound, Ortega responded with an active attack from his back.