Ahead of their UFC title fight on Sunday, Australian Alex Volkanovski has let rip at his opponent in a heated exchange.
The war of words between Australian UFC star Alex Volkanovski and Brian Ortega seriously heated up ahead of their long-awaited featherweight title bout today.
Volkanovski has repeatedly made it clear he can’t stand Ortega and his lack of professionalism, even going as far to say he can’t wait to “punch him in the face” in the Octagon.
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The trash talk continued at the pre-fight face off, where Volkanovski labelled Ortega a “drug cheat” during an intense stare-down in Las Vegas.
“I didn’t know about you popping,” the Aussie said to his rival.
“That s**t don’t sit well with me.
“You’re a f***ing drug cheat. You don’t deserve to be here. That’s it. Done.”
Volkanovski was likely referring to when Ortega tested positive to the anabolic steroid drostanolone in 2014 and failed a drug test. He was forced to serve a nine-month ban and was fined $2500 (USD).
During the heated stand-off, the pair had to separated by UFC president Dana White as Volkanovski continued to shout at his opponent.
“You ain’t taking the belt from me, you don’t deserve it,” he told Ortega.
“I ain’t scared of your s**t brother I’m telling you”.
The American had previously said he would be prepared to fight Volkanovski in an elevator instead of engaging in a public slanging match.
“Don’t go on with that elevator, we’ll fight in the elevator and all that bulls***,” Volkanovski said at the face off.
“I’ll fight you anywhere too, but the beauty of it is we get to fight Sunday”.
Now the talk is over, here’s everything you need to know about the fight.
When is the fight on?
The fight will be held on Sunday 26 September (AEST). The main fight card is scheduled to being at 12pm, with the Volkanovski-Ortega fight likely to get underway a couple of hours later.
Where is the fight being held?
The fight will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, where several high-profile UFC fights have been held recently.
How can I stream the fight?
Coverage of the Volkanovski-Ortega fight and the full main fight card will be available to watch on Main Event or stream on Kayo for $54.95 pay-per-view.
Tale of the tape
Both Volkanovski (22-1) and Ortega (15-1) have outstanding head to head records.
The Australian is 32 years old, two years his opponent’s senior.
Both fighters weigh 65.7kg.
Ortega is 7.6cm taller and he also has a 5cm advantage in reach over Volkanovski.
What are the betting odds?
Volkanovski is the favourite to retain his title and is paying $1.51 to win the bout, compared to Ortega at $2.44.
Here are some other betting markets for the method of victory.
Volkanovski by KO/TKO: $4.33
Volkanovski by Points: $2.37
Volkanovski by Submission: $13.00
Draw: $51
Ortega by KO/TKO: $7.50
Ortega by Points: $6
Ortega by Submission: $6.50
Who else is on the main fight card?
Alexander Volkanovski vs Brian Ortega (UFC featherweight title)
Valentina Shevchenko vs Lauren Murphy (UFC women’s flyweight title)
Nick Diaz vs Robbie Lawler
Curtis Blaydes vs Jairzinho Rozenstruik
Jessica Andrade vs Cynthia Calvillo
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