UFC featherweight title challenger Brian Ortega needs medical clearance to free him from a potential six-month suspension.
After a cageside doctor ruled Ortega (14-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) unable to continue a fight with champ Max Holloway (20-3 MMA, 16-3 UFC) at UFC 231, he was given a possibly lengthy timeout.
The medical suspensions were issued by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, which regulated the pay-per-view event this past Saturday at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. MMAFighting.com first reported them.
Ortega’s heart didn’t go unnoticed by UFC President Dana White, who nonetheless praised the commission doctor for stopping the bout after a brutal fourth round.
In other notable suspensions, Canadian welterweight Chad Laprise (13-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) suffered a knockout loss to Dhiego Lima (13-7 MMA, 2-5 UFC) and now needs medical clearance to avoid a six-month suspension.
Additionally, Brazilian welterweight Alex Oliveira (19-6-1 MMA, 9-4 UFC) is suspended for 60 days after his forehead was sliced open by an elbow from Gunnar Nelson (17-3-1 MMA, 8-3 UFC) on the pay-per-view main card.
The full list of medical suspensions stemming from UFC 231 include:
- Max Holloway: Suspended 30 days
def. Brian Ortega: Suspended 180 days or until medically cleared - Valentina Shevchenko: Suspended 30 days
def. Joanna Jedrzejczyk: Suspended 30 days - Gunnar Nelson: Suspended 30 days and needs medical clearance
def. Alex Oliveira: Suspended 30 days and needs medical clearance - Hakeem Dawodu: Suspended 14 days
def. Kyle Bochniak: Suspended 30 days and needs medical clearance - Thiago “Marreta” Santos: Suspended 14 days
def. Jimi Manuwa: Suspended 60 days and needs medical clearance - Nina Ansaroff: Suspended 14 days and needs medical clearance
def. Claudia Gadelha: Suspended 14 days - Gilbert Burns: Suspended 14 days
def. Olivier Aubin-Mercier: Suspended 14 days - Jessica Eye: Suspended 30 days
def. Katlyn Chookagian: Suspended 30 days - Elias Theodorou: Suspended 30 days
def. Eryk Anders: Suspended 30 days and needs medical clearance - Brad Katona: Suspended 14 days
def. Matthew Lopez: Suspended 30 days - Dhiego Lima: Suspended 14 days
def. Chad Laprise: Suspended 180 days or until medically cleared - Diego Ferreira: Suspended 14 days
def. Kyle Nelson: Suspended 60 days - Aleksandar Rakic: Suspended 14 days
def. Devin Clark: Suspended 60 days and needs medical clearance
For complete coverage of UFC 231, check out the UFC Events section of the site.