UFC’s undefeated flyweight prospect, Tracy Cortez‘s previous relationship with Brian Ortega is a matter of public knowledge. But many fans are unaware that the ex-power couple came together in an unusual way. It all started in 2020 when ‘T-City’ commented on one of Tracy’s Instagram posts, saying – “F**k it ima shoot my shot.” The rest is history.
Since then, the duo started meeting each other, and following this, fans saw them together on numerous occasions. Additionally, the two have also appeared together on a few UFC Embedded videos. Tracy had also helped Brian Ortega prepare for his UFC 266 fight against Alexander Volkanovski. The 29-year-old was in his corner that night as well.
Brian Ortega and Tracy Cortez appear to be engaged based on the GINORMOUS rock 💎 on her finger and Tracy commenting “I said yes” pic.twitter.com/a01QbIxHTd
— Amy Kaplan (@PhotoAmy33) October 8, 2021
A month later, Cortez was seen rocking a huge diamond ring on her finger, sparking rumors of their engagement. Followed by this, UFC commentator Laura Sanko asked her for confirmation in Instagram comments, Cortez didn’t skip a beat to retort with, “I said yes.” Since then, the two have appeared in one another’s UFC outings as well as a form of support.
Ortega went as far as getting her name tattooed on his lower lip on Valentine’s Day in 2022. Many fans considered what Brian claimed as a “gift,” to be an outlandish gesture. All seemed to be going well for the duo until early this year. On January 17, a Twitter user brought attention to the fact that Tracy and Ortega had suddenly deleted all images of one another from their social media accounts.
Brian Ortega and Tracy Cortez have both removed all the pictures together on their instagrams
And Tracy changed her instagram name back to Tracy R. Cortez, before it was Tracy R. Ortega
— Sabatello and Poirier Stan 💎 (@SabatelloStan) January 17, 2023
Additionally, Tracy changed her profile name from Tracy R. Ortega back to Tracy R. Cortez. As soon as this news broke, rumors of their breakup started spreading around MMA Twittersphere like wildfire, drawing a wide variety of reactions.
‘T-City‘ has lost 2 of his last 3 bouts, one being a title match. However, only time will determine whether their separation had any effect on the duo’s fighting career.
Tracy Cortez reflects upon her life after breaking up with Brian Ortega
Tracy Cortez has had a perfect UFC record since signing a deal after her Dana White’s Contender Series performance. She is currently riding a 5-fight win streak. However, in terms of her life outside the cage, Cortez seems to be going through turbulent times. To add to her troubles, Tracy even went under the knife to get surgery on one hand.
Boasting over 576K followers on Instagram, Cortez is now left with a mere 23 posts, after the removal of anything related to her ex. Her most recent post on Instagram suggests Tracy has not been at her finest in recent memory as she battles mental health issues.
In a post dated April 18, Tracy says, “Something I want to share with you, it’s been a hard time for me to walk around in the headspace that I’m in right now.” She continues, “Honestly, as many of you have seen. Life has been testing me, in my career, in my personal life & my faith.”
View this post on Instagram
Cortez added that she has been going through some “heavy days” but having a mindset of gratitude has helped her get through it for the most part. “Having a mindset that life is happening for you and NOT to you,” continued the UFC flyweight, before mentioning her belief in god having bigger plans for her.
The Instagram post is a carousel consisting of 10 media files, including videos and pictures. What’s also noteworthy is that the last image showcases a board with the saying, “One day you’ll look back and be thankful it went god’s way and not yours.”
Last year in December, Tracy had to pull out of her UFC Orlando clash against Amanda Ribas. Cortez stated she was going through a “private matter” at the time that led to the decision. Considering this was a time the ex-couple were seemingly together, fans still remain unaware of the reason behind her pullout.