Tracy Cortez was born on December 10, 1993. She spent her childhood in Phoenix, Arizona, in a household of Mexican immigrants. Cortez grew up with her three brothers: Jose Cortez, J.R. Cortez, and Abraham Cortez.
At the age of 14, Cortez started training in MMA after watching her eldest brother Jose fight in November 2008. Jose had the dream of becoming a UFC competitor. Tracy watched Jose win his match against Drew Fickett via split decision, which inspired her.
Unfortunately, Jose developed cardiovascular problems after he won the match. He was later diagnosed with germ cell cancer. Jose Cortez passed away from cancer in 2011.
Tracy Cortez got a tattoo on her arm as a remembrance of her late brother. Cortez went through a period of depression after her brother’s passing. But was able to overcome it with the support of her family and Henry Cejudo and Angel Cejudo, who were Jose’s best friends.
“Every time I feel tired or I feel fatigued or I question anything, I think like, damn, my brother fought with cancer in his heart and he didn’t give up. He fought through it. I’m perfectly healthy. I’m more than capable to do what I’m doing. This is easy work. That’s a huge motivator for me.”
Cortez fought under World Fighting Federation and KOTC in her amateur career. She had a record of 3-0 before being signed by Invicta Fighting Championships.
Cortez made her Invicta debut on August 31, 2017. She fought against Cheri Muraski at Invicta FC 25. However, she lost the fight via submission in round two.
Tracy Cortez returned to World Fighting in November 2017 and won against Roxanne Ceasear via unanimous decision.
On March 24, 2018, she faced Kaytlin Neil at Invicta FC 28. Cortez ended up winning the match via unanimous decision. Additionally, Cortez also racked up victories against Monica Median at V3 Fight Night 69 and Karen Cedillo at Combate Americas in 2018.
On February 15, 2019, she faced Erin Blanchfield at Invicta FC 34. Cortez won the match via split decision.
Tracy Cortez appeared in season three of DWTNCS web-series program in 2019. She faced Mariya Agapova via unanimous decision and was signed by the UFC.
Cortez was scheduled to make her promotional debut against Duda Santana at UFC in 2019. However, Santana withdrew from the match due to family issues. Therefore, she was replaced by Vanessa Melo.
Cortez and Melo both missed weight at the weigh-ins, weighing in at 136.5 pounds. They were both 0.5 pounds over the bantamweight non-title match limit. The bout proceeded at bantamweight after an announcement was made regarding a scale error.
The scale used at the weigh-ins was set 0.7 pounds above the official scale. Therefore, Cortez and Melo went on to compete at bantamweight. Cortez went on to win the match via unanimous decision.
On October 2020, Cortez was scheduled to fight Bea Malecki at UFC Fight Night 179. However, Malecki was replaced by newcomer Stephanie Egger for undisclosed reasons. Cortez emerged victorious in the match against Egger, winning via unanimous decision.
Next in 2021, Cortez faced Justine Kish at UFC on ESPN 22. During the weigh-ins, Cortez weighed in at 126.5 pounds, half a pound over the flyweight non-title fight limit.
The bout proceeded at catchweight. Cortez was fined 20% of her individual purse, which was given to Kish. Cortez secured another win, defeating Kish by a split decision.
Tracy Cortez was scheduled to face JJ Aldrich in 2021 at UFC. However, Cortez was pulled from the match due to injury. She was replaced by Vanessa Demopoulos.
Cortez then faced Melissa Gatto in May 2022 at UFC 274. She won the match via unanimous decision.
Cortez was next scheduled to face Amanda Ribas in December 2022. She was supposed to compete at UFC on ESPN 42. However, Cortez was pulled from the bout due to an unspecified medical issue, and the bout was cancelled.
Tracy Cortez used to be engaged to fellow UFC competitor Brian Ortega. But recently, it seems like the couple broke up since Cortez deleted all their pictures together from her Instagram. Additionally, she changed her Instagram handle name from Tracy R. Ortega to Tracy R. Cortez.
When Cortez’s mother passed away in 2016 after suffering from thyroid cancer, she fell into depression.
But Cortez constantly remembered her mother’s advice on her deathbed: “You’re special, you’re more than capable of this — don’t give up.”
