Brian Ortega ‘officially’ apologizes to Jay Park, welcomes Korean Zombie fight

After qualifying regret over his actions at UFC 248, Brian Ortega is admitting he was in the wrong.

In a short message on Twitter, the onetime UFC featherweight title challenger on Tuesday night “officially” apologized to Jay Park, the Korean-American musician and sometime translator of Chan Sung Jung, whom he reportedly slapped at this past Saturday’s pay-per-view event.

One day earlier, Ortega apologized for his behavior with a few caveats that left out Park, whom he targeted after an interview where “The Korean Zombie” accused him of ducking a fight.

Ortega on Instagram said he “slapped three people at the same time” at UFC 248, adding he apologized for “slapping the translator” and the “K-Pop Star,” but didn’t apologize for slapping the “instigator.” He later deleted the post.

That same day, new footage emerged of the aftermath of the physical confrontation, which prompted Park to file a report with the Las Vegas Police Department. While being physically separated from Park, Ortega said, “I told you I’d slap you like a b*tch,” referring to an earlier message on social media where the promised to do the same.

Park said he never meant to instigate any confrontation with Ortega and was simply acting as a translator of Jung, who after the incident called the UFC vet a “coward” and vowed revenge in the octagon.

As for the accusation that Jung’s team was trying to stir the pot, Park said on The Ariel Helwani show, “We’re not puppet masters. We don’t ever want to put words in somebody’s mouth.”

Park added he wasn’t sure whether he’d proceed with a charge against Ortega. The UFC vet could be cited for battery within a one-year period if his alleged victim decides to press charges; the charge carries a maximum six-month sentence and up to a $1,000 fine.

All signs point to a future fight between Ortega and Jung, who were previously booked to fight at UFC Busan this past December before a torn ACL forced Ortega to withdraw. Jung went on to stop ex-lightweight champ Frankie Edgar in the first round.