One of the most interesting fights this coming October looks like the one that will feature Brian Ortega and Chan Sung Jung. It’s not a title fight or even a number one contender fight, but the mild case of bad blood in the runup to the bout paints an interesting picture of the fight between two fan favorites.
Both could reasonably contend for the title within the next year or so, both have their own fanbases rooting for them to win, and the two camps already had a bit of an altercation which saw a police report filed against Ortega. The incident had Ortega slap Jung’s translator, Jay Park, and while Ortega has said things aren’t personal because of that incident, he didn’t deny that it is a bit personal in other ways.
Oretga can’t wait to hit Jung in the face
Just because Ortega isn’t hung up on the incident with Park doesn’t mean he’s not looking forward to getting to lay hands on Jung. While speaking to MMAJunkie, he claimed the fight is semi-personal.
“It’s not too personal. It’s basically semi-personal. Usually, you sign a contract and you fight someone and you understand that that’s your opponent and you have respect for them. But me and him lost respect for each other, and now I guess if you want to call it personal, it’s personal. But it’s more of someone I don’t like that I want to hit in the face that I get to without going to jail,” Ortega elaborated.
He also said that he’s expecting, in his words, a “slugfest.” With some technical work, too, of course.
“Me and him kind of already have our thing where we want to hit each other in the face. So honestly, I just see a slugfest and some technical work. But yeah – we kind of don’t like each other.”
The dislike between the two fighters is interesting because it seems more genuine than some of the feuds in the UFC. Some fighters take to over the top trash talk to sell their fights. Sometimes, there’s back and forth social media wars for weeks leading up to a bout.
This fight doesn’t quite have that. It doesn’t appear Ortega and Jung like each other, and neither one is making a point of publicizing that to get eyes on the fight. It’s not a publicity stunt as much as it is a simple fact.
Their fight is set for October 17th, and it may result in a number one contender rising at featherweight – but that, of course, all depends on how the ranking committee decides to value the outcome.