Ortega has lost 3 of his last 4 fights, over the span of 5 years. Including 2 title fights, his only win in those 4 fights was against KZ, more than 3 years ago. Max beat the piss out of him so badly he took 2 years off. Iirc he only dropped from number 1 to number 2 in those 2 years. Beats KZ, and gets another TS. This time Alex beat the piss out of him. That was more than 2 years ago. His corner picked him up off the ground and to the stool at one point.
He’s still ranked number 3. And gets to fight in a title eliminator. Against the guy he last lost to. A sub fucked Ortega’s shoulder. It was a legit win for Yair.
The whole thing is pretty fucking ridiculous, imo. Lose badly in a title fight. Get one win a cpl years later and get another TS. Get dominated in that title fight. Lose another fight, but never really drop in the rankings. And always just one win away from a TS.