UFC featherweight fighter Deigo Lopes is gearing up to face ranked #3 fighter Brian Ortega at the UFC 303. Lopes took the fight on short notice as Dana White wanted more tantalizing fights after the Conor McGregor fiasco. It would be Lopes’ second fight of the year after he shocked Sodiq Yusuff to clinch the victory back in UFC 300.

Lopes’s MMA career has been a rollercoaster ride; with a record of 24 victories and six defeats, Lopes has a massive winning percentage. However, his career under the promotion started with losing streaks. Ahead of his clash against “T-City,” let us look at Brazilians’ defeats.

Diego Lopes’ only UFC defeat – Who did he lose to?

Born and rai͏sed͏͏͏͏ ͏in Manaus͏, Amazo͏͏͏nas, Brazi͏͏l, ͏Di͏ego ͏Lopes ͏͏has always͏͏͏ ͏͏͏been fasc͏i͏͏na͏ted͏ ͏b͏͏y ͏m͏͏a͏͏rt͏ial art͏͏͏͏s. ͏Hi͏s ͏͏fami͏͏ly h͏a͏d a ͏͏tra͏dit͏i͏on͏ that ͏͏ev͏eryone s͏ho͏͏uld lear͏n͏͏ to ͏fight,͏͏ a͏nd this is h͏o͏͏w Lopes͏’s career in͏͏ ͏MMA ͏s͏ta͏rted. ͏T͏he͏ ͏la͏d beg͏͏͏an t͏r͏aining in ͏B͏JJ at a y͏͏͏oun͏g͏ ͏͏a͏͏ge ͏͏and soo͏͏͏n ͏͏aft͏er, ͏he st͏ar͏te͏d co͏m͏petin͏g ͏at t͏he a͏͏͏ge of͏ ͏7. Lopes received his purple belt at 16, and since then, he started MMA and never looked back

If we were to talk about his endeavors in UFC, his initial faceoff was not that great. Diego Lopes fought in the Dana White contender series back in 2021. His opponent was Joanderson Brito; after fighting brilliantly for three rounds, Lopes ultimately tasted defeated by a unanimous decision. He had to leave his UFC dreams behind and fought for other lesser-known promotions, but Dana White pulled him back to UFC in 2023.

His debut fight was against Movsar Evloev, one of the best in the division, and again, after a hard-fought battle, Lopes lost the bout by way of a unanimous decision. Lopes has fought four times under UFC, and Evloev was his only loss under the promotion. Now that we know about his losses inside the Octagon, what about outside the UFC? Let’s find out.

Has the Brazilian UFC star lost outside the UFC? What is his record?

Diego Lopes has lost seven times outside of the UFC if we were to take his professional as well as his amateur record. The first loss of his career came against Thiago Silva. Another loss followed, and this time, Rodrigo Praia defeated him. After back-to-back losses, Lopes went on a nine-fight-winning streak before crossing paths against Amir Elzhurkaev, who knocked him out to clinch the victory in the second round.

After the humiliating loss, Diego Lopes again went on a seven-fight-winning streak before facing the worst time of his career, losing three back-to-back fights against Joanderson Brito, Nate Richardson, and Zack Schneider. Well, it was this turning point of his career as, after the series of losses, Lopes introspected about his game plan.

His final loss outside the promotion came against Nathan Orchard. Despite many losses, Diego Lopes has kept his winning streak intact. His upcoming fight might decide the fate of his career, as a victory against Brian Ortega would propel him upward on the featherweight rankings. What’s your take on their match? State your thoughts in the comments below.