Frankie Edgar has been a staple in the UFC's featherweight and lightweight divisions for the past several years, and is known as one of the most durable fighters the Octagon has ever seen.
Although Edgar is not undefeated in his mixed martial arts (MMA) career; having won 17 fights, lost five, and drawn one, "The Answer" has never been finished. That intrigues Edgar's opponent this weekend at UFC 222 on pay-per-view (PPV), Brian Ortega.
Ortega will meet Edgar in a featherweight match-up at the event and the winner will likely be Max Holloway's next challenger for the 145-pound title.
Originally Edgar was scheduled to fight Holloway at the event but the Hawaiian suffered an injury and was forced to pull out.
"T-City" is undefeated in his fighting career and is looking to keep that streak alive against Edgar. He had this to say about the match-up to the media this past Monday (quotes via MMA Fighting):
“That’s the best part,” Ortega said Monday. “This is a great challenge because it puts that extra edge on me. Because you know what? This is a guy that’s never been finished.
“I’m the kind of guy who if you tell me you can’t do something, like, ‘Brian, you can’t do a backflip off that two-floor building’ and I’m going to give it a shot,” said Ortega, who has seven submissions among his 13 career victories.
“That’s the way I’ve been ever since I was a kid. So if you say ‘hey man, this guy’s never been finished,’ and everyone told me ‘You can’t finish Frankie Edgar, you can’t do this,’ for me it’s like let’s go for it. Let’s see if we can do it.
“I’m happy that now in my career I am sharing the Octagon with guys like [Edgar],” Ortega said. “Big names. I got to share the Octagon with Clay Guida.
"I got to share the Octagon with Cub Swanson. Now I’m going to share the Octagon with Frankie Edgar. These are things that as a fighter you always dream of.
"You dream of fighting the guys that you watched growing up now I’m doing it. Not just on one guy, but those three guys in a row who have huge names and have done a lot great things in this sport, especially Frankie as a legend.
“I love the fact that he’s a down guy to fight no matter what,” Ortega said. “The change of opponent and everything, he’s still in there. I’m grateful.
“Frankie was a guy who I’ve seen him, I’ve looked at his fights growing up, I wouldn’t say I was a fan fan, but for sure I was like ‘yo, that guy’s tough, he’s the champ, he’s fighting the best of the best,’” when I was in high school.
"You know? And now I’m growing and I’m going to fight Frankie Edgar. That’a going to happen on Saturday. That in and of itself is an achievement.”
What are your thoughts on Ortega wanting to be the first man in mixed martial arts (MMA) history to finish Frankie Edgar? Do you think that the jiu-jitsu specialist has the ability to pull off the historic feat? And who are you picking for this weekend's highly-anticipated featherweight scrap? Let us know your thoughts on the matter in the comments section below!
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