Two of the top featherweights in the UFC, Brian Ortega and Chan Sung Jung, will go head-to-head in the main event of UFC Fight Night 180 on Saturday, October 17. 

 

Ortega is the second ranked contender to Alexander Volkanovski’s UFC Featherweight Championship. Jung, who is better known as “The Korean Zombie”, is right behind him as the fourth ranked fighter in the 145-pound weight class.

 

UFC President Dana White has already laid out the stakes for the main event clash, and they are high; whoever comes out victorious will get the next shot at the gold. 

 

“I’m excited it’s finally happening,” White said in an interview with Sports Illustrated. “Whoever wins this fight, it catapults one of these guys into a shot at the title.”

 

While the stakes are high for both men in the main event clash, they are exponentially so to Ortega, who is making a return to the ring after nearly two years away. The 29-year-old is looking to come back strong following the first loss of his career in his championship bout against Max Holloway at UFC 231 in December 2018.

 

The Korean Zombie is undeniably one of the biggest draws in the featherweight division, and the entire company for that matter. The 33-year-old has been the headliner of four of his five UFC Fight Night appearances since making his UFC debut in 2011. He has come out on top of all but one of them, and has won the Performance of the Night award in three of those victories and Submission of the Night in the other. 

 

The Korean Zombie has taken the road less traveled to this point in his life. The fan-favorite was forced to put his career on hold after getting called into the South Korean military in 2013 and was away from the ring for over three years before returning in 2017. He looked as though he has not lost a step though, going 3-1 since making his anticipated return. 

 

Rumors have been circulating around the potential bout between Ortega and Jung since the latter slapped The Korean Zombie's translator Jay Park at UFC 248. Following the incident, Jung called Ortega a “coward” and vowed to get his revenge in the Octagon. He will finally get his chance to do just that on Saturday, October 16.