‘Lot of Bantamweights Are Much Larger’- Cody Garbrandt Explains Why He Moved to Flyweight

Cody ‘No Love’ Garbrandt is back in action this weekend at UFC 269.

However, the former UFC bantamweight champion will compete in a new division. Garbrandt will make his flyweight debut against Kai-Kara France on December 11, 2021. His decision to switch came as a surprise to many as he was at the top of the bantamweight division not so long ago. But Garbrandt had been talking about moving down a weight class for some time now.

During the media day in the build-up to his fight at UFC 269, he talked about what finally made him make the switch. He said, “We’ve been going back-and-forth. It’s been on my mind. I’m a doer. When I say I’m gonna do something, I’m gonna do it. We were slated to fight Figueiredo over a year ago. Obviously, caught COVID pretty bad. But I truly believe everything is on timing. It allowed me the time to do this correctly. This has not been an overnight, eight-week camp thing cutting down. We’ve been working for close to seven months now. I actually text Dana a couple of weeks ago and said, I wish I would’ve done this a while ago.”

During the media day, he was also asked about what will be different about him in this division. He said, “I feel like this is probably my more natural weight. I feel like a lot of bantamweights are much larger… I feel like this has been a necessary transition into the flyweight division. For quite some time this needed to be done.”

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Cody Garbrandt facing a worthy adversary

‘No Love‘ will make his flyweight debut against the number 6 ranked Kai-Kara France. Don’t blink is one of the toughest fighters in the UFC right now, and will be a tough test for Garbrandt. He believes that the fighter from New Zealand is a good opponent and a worthy adversary. However, he is confident in his abilities and is excited to enter the octagon this weekend.

Garbrandt is one of the most known fighters on the UFC roster right now. The promotion signed him in 2015 on the back of a 5-0 run. After joining the UFC, he immediately made an impact and went on a 5-0 run. Because of his impressive performances, he got a shot at the then UFC bantamweight champion, Dominick Cruz at UFC 207. Many expected Cruz to win the fight as he was on a 13 fight win streak and was 22-1 in his career. However, ‘No Love’ put in one of the best performances of his career against the champion and won the fight via a unanimous decision. That was Cruz’s first loss in the UFC.

After winning the title, Garbrandt saw a change in fortunes, and the 11-0 fighter went on a three-fight losing skid. He was knocked out in all three fights, with many questioning his chin. He bounced back from the losses with a brutal knockout win over Raphael Assuncao, but lost again in his next fight against Rob Font.

Cody Garbrandt has fought through multiple health issues in recent times. And a switch to flyweight might just be what he needs. A win against ‘Don’t Blink’ will immediately put him close to getting a title shot.

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