Noche UFC: Brian Ortega Details Sneak Peek of Sphere - ‘I’ll for Sure Be Distracted'

Ortega says he'll have to be "locked in and tuned" at The Sphere for his fight with Diego Lopes.

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Brian Ortega says there's more than meets the eye in his next UFC fight.

UFC 306 News: Full 10-Fight Card Revealed For Sept. 14 PPV Event at MSG Sphere

Noche UFC

The former UFC title challenger returns against rising featherweight contender Diego Lopes, who Ortega was originally scheduled to face at UFC 303 before he wasforced to withdraw due to health issues the day of the event.

The two featherweights will now meet at "Riyadh Season Noche UFC" - a $17M, one-off event held at The Sphere in Las Vegas on Sept. 14 to celebrate Mexican Independance Day.

First look at the graphic for "Riyadh Season Noche UFC" at Sphere in Las Vegas 🤩🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/BXFxYUIeFq

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 27, 2024

Noche UFC will be the first sporting event ever to take place at the Las Vegas Sphere, with UFC CEO Dana White saying he'll put on "the greatest event in the history of combat sports" while also paying tribute to the Mexican people.

The possibilities are endless for the UFC, as they have Sphere's visuals at their disposal to put on a fight card like no other.

"Riyadh Season Noche UFC will utilize Sphere’s state-of-the-art audio and video capabilities to deliver a live experience never before witnessed in the history of sports.  The venue’s next-generation technologies include the world’s highest resolution LED display that wraps up, over and around the audience, creating a fully immersive visual environment. The venue also features the world’s most advanced audio system, Sphere Immersive Sound, powered by HOLOPLOT, which delivers audio with unmatched clarity and precision to every guest." (via UFC.com)

For those as curious as I am, we finally finally got the first look at what the layout will look like for #UFCNoche at the #SphereVegas. Very interested to see how the broadcast they’ll have on the domed screen will impact with the fighters’ focus/attentiveness. #NocheUFC #UFC pic.twitter.com/1T4Vnas2df

— Shady Beshai (@shadybeshai) July 27, 2024

"Bro, It's Crazy..." Ortega On His Inside Look Of The Sphere

So, what's it like for Brian Ortega to be fighting at The Sphere of all places? Well, apparently "T-City" has already had an inside look at the venue ahead of Sep. 14 and was blown away by what White and co. have been promoting for months.

"I went to Vegas, and we did some filming for it. And they put some VR goggles on us, and we were able to see what the arena would look like on the inside. And bro, it's crazy," Ortega said of Sphere on Morning Kombat. "It's crazy..."

UFC Featherweight contender Brian Ortega. / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Snap Back To Reality

With where he's fighting Diego Lopes, Ortega wouldn't be surprised if he's caught in the moment with everything that's going on in the background with Sphere's immersive visuals.

"I can't say too much because I'm not allowed to. But, yeah, it's gonna be something where I for sure have to stay locked in and tuned. I have to stay focused," Ortega continued. "Because if you start paying attention at what's gonna go on when the fight happens, I'll for sure be distracted and I probably will, but probably it's gonna be for a good cause anyways."

"Once I get punched in the face, I'm gonna come back to reality anyways," the top contender added.

Brian Ortega is coming off a win in Mexico City in February, where he submitted former interim champ Yair Rodriguez after some early adversity.

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A post shared by Brian Ortega (@briantcity)

Ranked #3 at featherweight, California's Ortega may not be too far away from a title shot with a win over Lopes, but he'll likely to have to wait a while as Max Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski are in the queue for a title fight with reigning champion Ilia Topuria.

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