MMA Knockout

BREAKING: UFC 303 Fight Receives Shocking Change Just Before PPV Begins

The UFC brass pulled a Houdini and landed a huge last-minute replacement fight for the UFC 303 co-main event before the PPV.

Fernando Quiles Jr.

Dec 2, 2023; Austin, Texas, USA; The octagon is ready for UFC Fight Night at Moody Center.
Dec 2, 2023; Austin, Texas, USA; The octagon is ready for UFC Fight Night at Moody Center. / Dustin Safranek-USA TODAY Sports

The UFC 303 card received a shocking change right before the main card got started.

Diego Lopes was expecting to meet Brian Ortega in an initially planned featherweight matchup inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 29th. The weight class was changed to 155 pounds after it was clear that Ortega wouldn't be able to make the 145-pound limit.

While it appeared a crisis was averted before weigh-in day, that wasn't actually the case.

Rumors swirled claiming that Ortega was being replaced by Dan Ige with just a short period of time left before the PPV portion of UFC 303.

The rumors were correct.

UFC 303: ALEX PEREIRA VS. JIŘÍ PROCHÁZKA 2 LIVE RESULTS & HIGHLIGHTS

Dan Ige Replaces Brian Ortega to Save UFC 303 Co-Headliner

Dan Ige during his fight against Mirsad Bektic during UFC 247 at Toyota Center.
Feb 8, 2020; Houston, Texas, USA; Dan Ige during his fight against Mirsad Bektic during UFC 247 at Toyota Center. / Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Amid the rumors, the @MagicM_MMABets 'X' account followed up to report that Dan Ige was indeed replacing Brian Ortega to fight Diego Lopes in the UFC 303 co-main event. The announcement was made on the UFC 303 ESPN prelims broadcast.

UFC play-by-play commentator Jon Anik revealed that Brian Ortega woke up with a fever and his temperature of 103 degrees did not go down as time passed.

It's a stunning achievement for the UFC brass given the fight change was put together at the absolute 11th hour. A lot of questions were raised before the announcement was made on how exactly Ige would be cleared by the NSAC to compete given the circumstances.

Anik explained that Ige actually did weigh in and was cleared without issue. Megan Olivi then interviewed Jeff Mullen of the NSAC, who explained that Ige's medicals were already on record due to his fight back in February.

Lopes vs. Ige will be a 165-pound catchweight fight. Ige weighed in at 164.5 pounds, while Lopes clocked in at 161 pounds.

Check back on the MMA Knockout on Sports Illustrated homepage for continued coverage of the UFC 303 card.

UFC 303 LIVE STREAM FREE: PEREIRA VS. PROCHAZKA 2, ORTEGA VS. LOPES (WATCH ALONG)

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Fernando Quiles Jr.

FERNANDO QUILES JR.

Fernando has over a decade of combat sports news writing experience. He currently covers MMA, boxing, and pro wrestling. Fernando joined MMA Knockout as the Lead Writer/Editor when it was founded in 2023.

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