“Holy sh**! It’s Iron man!” Brian Ortega once face-timed Robert Downey Jr without actually knowing who Hollywood superstar was

UFC featherweight star, Brian Ortega could not recognize Iron Man star, Robert Downey Jr. until he saw him on Facetime.

“Holy sh**! It’s Iron man!” Brian Ortega once face-timed Robert Downey Jr without actually knowing who Hollywood superstar was

Brian Ortega could not recognise Robert Downey Jr. (Image via Imago/X)

Brian Ortega had a hilarious encounter with actor Robert Downey Jr. in the lead-up to his fight in 2018. Ortega featured in the co-main event against Max Holloway at UFC 226. The incident showed just how out of touch Brian Ortega was with the world of celebrity. Ortega later revealed the story to the media. Here is what happened:

Brian Ortega was in Los Angeles for a media lunch when he got a call from his manager. He revealed that they kept saying ‘RDJ’ and Ortega had no idea what they were talking about. When he asked, they said it was ‘Robert Downey Jr’. Ortega did not want to admit it, but he did not know who Robert Downey Jr. was. It was only when Ortega got on Facetime and saw Robert Downey Jr. staring back at him, that he yelled: “Holy s***! It’s Iron Man!”

YouTube video

Reportedly Brian Ortega barely follows sports and TV in general. So he was not familiar with one of the biggest stars in the world. Downey Jr. was on the line to wish Ortega luck in his fight. He told him that he was a big fan and that he was excited to see him fight. Ortega was humbled by the experience.

FS Video

He could not believe that one of the biggest stars in the world had taken the time to reach out to him. Ortega later revealed that it made me feel really good. The featherweight title bout between Ortega and Holloway was canceled. However, the story of Ortega’s encounter with Downey Jr. quickly went viral.

Brian Ortega vs. Ilia Topuria for the UFC featherweight title

Brian Ortega reportedly is the betting favorite to be Ilia Topuria‘s first title defense. Ortega is a featherweight fighter and currently ranks #4 in the UFC featherweight division.

Brian Ortega is willing to to face Ilia Topuria in Spain
Brian Ortega is willing to face Ilia Topuria in Spain (via TimesNow/UFC/SPORT)

Ortega quickly established himself as one of the top prospects in the featherweight division. In 2017, he was challenged for the UFC featherweight title against Max Holloway, but he lost by unanimous decision. He contested for the title again in 2021. This time against former champion, Alexander Volkanovski. However, again he lost by unanimous decision.

Meanwhile, Topuria recently claimed the UFC featherweight title by defeating Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298. It will be interesting to see if this potential title fight goes down in the octagon in the upcoming months.

In case you missed it!