UFC Long Island this past Saturday really delivered in a big way. The Fight Night cards had started to get a bit stale and didn't really feel all that important outside of the main event and another fight here and there. This card presented a mix of fights that were for entertainment value, important for the progression of a division. or both. The main event was one of those fights that was set up to do both as it served as a number one contender fight, at least for Yair Rodriguez. I have my doubts that Ortega would have gotten another title shot had he won, but we won't have to worry about that now. Unfortunately, Ortega suffered a shoulder injury during a grappling transition in the latter half of the first round that left him unable to continue. Yair had him sort of set up for an arm bar, but it wasn't close to being finished and didn't really work the way he was intending, but in the process of trying to escape, Ortega's shoulder seemed to dislocate. It wasn't a complete freak accident like what happened to Aleksandar Rakic, but it wasn't really a submission either. Hopefully, it was only a dislocation and all of the surrounding structure's in Ortega's shoulder are ok and he will be able to return on a somewhat normal schedule. Of course, Ortega doesn't fight as often as most fighters do anyways, but the hope is that he can avoid yet another shoulder surgery. In any case, a win is a win in MMA and Yair Rodriguez was able to come out on the other side of this with a win, which counts for something.
Normally I do a section for each fighter about their performance, but given that the fight was so short, I am just going to go through the few minutes and talk about both at the same time. From the start of the fight, Ortega was on the pressure and he was in Yair's face. That is nothing out of the ordinary for Ortega as he typically likes to force the issue and cause his opponents to make mistakes that he can jump on. While I was interested to see exactly how this would have caused to look in the 4th and 5th, Yair was having no issues early. He was hitting Ortega hard time and time again right on the chin. Ortega was his typical durable self, but Yair was really tagging him with some nice shots and combinations. Ortega was landing some as well and managed to open a cut under Yair's eye, but Rodriguez had a very clear advantage in the speed and technical striking. Eventually, Ortega closed the distance enough to start working for his takedown attempts, but he wasn't having much success early. He clinched Yair once, but Rodriguez was able to break away. He forced another clinch and was eventually able to get the fight down, but in an awkward position. Ortega was starting to work his way into a more traditional top position when Yair tried to grab onto an armbar. He was in the early stages of setting it up and Ortega saw what was happening. He was trying to work his arm free and it looked like he was about to get his arm and hand free when he suffered the injury and he fell onto his back and the fight was stopped. It wasn't immediately clear to me what had happened in real time, but he immediately started grabbing at his shoulder and just the way his arm was laying there didn't look great. There was some cause for optimism as when they came back from commercial, Ortega was still in the cage and was walking and talking without seeming like he was in too much discomfort. His calmness in the moment suggested that when the shoulder was back in place, his pain was gone, which is common, but that he was also feeling much better. Hopefully that means that there was no further injury, but obviously there is no way to know for sure until he has the proper imaging done and we get to hear the news from a reporter. I sort of justify the way the fight ended by knowing that Yair was winning that round, but of course, there's no way to know how the following rounds would have played out. Ortega was about to have top position as well, but Yair was trying for that arm bar and that is what caused the injury, so you have to give Yair some degree of credit.
I guess we'll start with Yair here and try to figure out what is next for him. He is on record saying that if he won this fight, he was going to be the number one contender for a title shot and he did win the fight. This isn't generally the type of win that gets you a title shot, especially when it isn't backed up by a long winning streak. He's in a bit of a weird spot as is the whole division right now. The first thing we need to know is how long Alexander Volkanovski will be out. He needed surgery to fix a broken finger from the Holloway fight, so he has to recover from that first. The timing of that will more than likely determine how this plays out. I think if Volk just takes his time and recovers fully, we could see Yair vs Josh Emmett for an interim title before the end of the year. Some people hate the interim belts, but I honestly don't mind them very much. It adds a little element to a fight and it makes the unification bout a little more interesting as well. There's enough to be upset about in this sport and interim titles just aren't very high on the list at all. If Volk is in a position to return before the year is out though, I think they just need to wait for him. At that point, the UFC will have to decide whether it is Yair or Emmett who gets the shot and I would give it to Emmett. Yair is the more interesting fighter and more marketable though. Yair will have the Mexican crowd behind him and a more general fan as well as his highlight tape looks like a Street Fighter trailer. Emmett doesn't have that flash, but he has legitimately earned the shot over a very long win streak. If Yair doesn't get the shot, that means he'll have to earn the number one contender in another fight more than likely. The easiest way to do that would be running back this fight with Ortega if he is available. If Ortega does need surgery and isn't going to be able to fight, I think Arnold Allen is the guy I would most want to see fight Yair. If not him, Calvin Kattar is always game for a tough fight. Yair has plenty of options and a lot of what is next for him is contingent on those around him. He's done his part and he just has to see how it plays out with Volk's health before we can really start to pinpoint a direction for him.
As for Brian Ortega, the most important thing is determining the health of his shoulder. Ortega has had such a problem with serious injuries in his career and it would just be awful for him to go through another one. He was beat up really bad in the Holloway fight and had the hand issues as well as obviously some serious damage to his face. He always takes a long time off between fights, so I wouldn't have really expected a quick turnaround from him regardless, but let's just hope that can be a choice and not out of necessity. Ideally, being able to run this fight back would be the top option, especially if it can be done somewhat short order. If Ortega does need to be out a bit longer, he still has plenty of options. His relative inactivity does give him one advantage and that is that most matchups at the top of the division are fresh for him. I think a fight with Calvin Kattar probably aligns with both men's needs the most. They're close to each other in the rankings, both coming off of a loss, and represent the highest level opponent each could get. I doubt either wants to really drop down and fight someone much lower than them and this seems to be their clear chance to avoid that situation. Beyond that, there isn't anyone particularly obvious. Arnold Allen would be the next highest option, but between both of their injury problems, it really doesn't feel like there's a high chance of them ever lining up. Giga Chikadze and Bryce Mitchell are really far down, so those don't feel likely either. It is a bit hard to project though since we just don't really even know when he may be looking for a fight. It could be by the end of the year or he could be off until next July for all we know.
What do you guys think? How did you think the fight was going? Do you want to see this fight run back or just move on from it? Leave your thoughts and comments below. Thanks for reading and have a good one.
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