Renato Moicano slams Ortega after Brian Ortega withdrew from their UFC 331 lightweight fight less than a week before the event, leaving the Brazilian frustrated after months of preparation.
Moicano was scheduled to face Ortega at UFC 331 on Sept. 19 in Los Angeles, but the fight fell apart after Ortega suffered a cut above his left eye.
Ortega has since released a statement explaining his decision to withdraw, but he has yet to provide a timeline for his return.
The withdrawal also marked the second time Ortega has pulled out of a fight against Moicano. The two were previously scheduled to meet in March before Ortega withdrew from that bout as well.
Moicano has since received a new opponent and will headline UFC Vegas 123 against rising lightweight Tom Nolan on Oct. 31.
Despite securing another fight, Moicano remains furious about losing his UFC 331 matchup with Ortega.
Moicano addressed the situation in a video on his YouTube channel, where he admitted that he never expected Ortega to withdraw from their fight again.
“This is something I didn’t expect at all,” Moicano said of Ortega’s withdrawal. “Simply put, the easiest fight in the division just slipped through my fingers, and I’m already p—–, already angry, but there’s nothing I can do. One thing I’ve been asked (in the lead up to this fight) is ‘Moicano aren’t you afraid the fight will fall through again?’, I said, ‘There is no way Ortega is going to chicken out again; there’s absolutely no way, there’s absolutely no way this fight isn’t happening at UFC 331’.”
Moicano said he had every reason to believe Ortega would make it to the fight, especially after the pair had already seen their first matchup fall apart.
“He hasn’t fought in over two years and this is the second fight he’s withdrawn from with only a week’s notice,” Moicano continued. “What that son of a b—- doesn’t know is that you need to make weight; you spend money on training, I spent hours without making any content on YouTube, nowadays I’m a YouTuber.”
Moicano later explained just how much preparation went into the fight and why Ortega’s withdrawal left him so frustrated.
“Ortega chickened out,” Moicano said. “Something I never expected whatsoever. Quite simply, the easiest fight in the division just slipped right through my fingers. And I was pissed, I was angry, but there’s nothing I can do about it. If you’re watching this video, it’s because I’m not going to fight at UFC 331, unfortunately, because of this son of a bitch, because of this guy who’s always pulling out.”
Moicano had previously spoken about his confidence that Ortega would show up for the fight. However, he received the news of the cancellation less than 72 hours after discussing the matchup.
“Where is UFC 331 going to be? Los Angeles, California, his hometown,” Moicano said on Tuesday. “This guy is coming off four straight losses, or three straight losses, hasn’t fought in over two years, and this is already the second fight he’s pulled out of with one week to go. And it’s the second fight against me, man! Twice against me!
“And what this son of a bitch doesn’t know is that you have to cut weight, you spend money on training, you spend hours not producing content — and I’m a f*cking YouTuber now. How many days of live streams did I miss, you son of a bitch? How many days of dieting did I go through just to punch your bum-ass face? And then you simply come up with an excuse like that. That’s how f*cking outraged I am about this.”
Moicano also questioned whether other fighters would be willing to accept a fight against Ortega after his latest withdrawal.
The Brazilian admitted that he could still consider fighting Ortega again because he views the matchup as a lucrative opportunity, but he questioned whether other fighters would have the same interest.
“The second thing I have to say is that nobody is ever going to trust you again,” Moicano said. “Who’s going to want to fight Brian Ortega? He already missed weight against Sterling, he’s had all kinds of problems. I didn’t want to bring these personal things up here, but in interviews he said it was Tracy Cortez’s fault, that Tracy Cortez was making his life miserable, that he was having problems because of that. And now, over the last two years, over the last three years, what’s the problem? I’m asking, but I want you to go f*ck yourself. I don’t even want to know.”
Moicano also pointed to the financial side of the canceled fight, claiming the matchup represented a significant payday for him.
“It was the easiest half a million dollars I was ever going to put in my pocket,” he said with a laugh. “Nobody talks about that. The money I’m talking about is just… they said it, okay? That’s what was reported. Nobody knows for sure, but they said it [laughs]. Another thing is training time. I don’t even like training anymore, man! I’m 37 years old, you son of a bitch.”
Moicano will now turn his attention to Nolan as he looks to move on from the canceled UFC 331 matchup.
For Ortega, the focus shifts to recovering from his latest eye injury and determining when he can return to competition.
