Former UFC featherweight title challenger Brian Ortega has pushed back against the widespread belief that the world’s elite mixed martial artists compete exclusively inside the Octagon.
Ortega revealed that his perspective shifted dramatically after sharing a training camp with former Bellator champion A.J. McKee:
“The UFC is just a marketing machine. There are fighters outside the UFC who would wreck us, who would teach us a lesson, and they know it. That’s why they don’t invite them in. You can’t fake technique and skill, just like you can’t fake character or mindset. I know McKee knows what he’s doing and operates at the highest possible level,” Ortega said in an interview with Anatomy of a Fighter.
McKee is set to fight Rajabali Shaidullaev this week for the Rizin championship and the vacant PFL featherweight belt. Meanwhile, Ortega makes his lightweight division debut on September 19 at UFC 331 in Los Angeles, where he faces Renato Moicano.
