Why and How Did Cody Garbrandt Lose His Shine in the UFC?

Cody Garbrandt is one of the most promising bantamweight fighters in the UFC right now. ‘No Love’ is a former UFC bantamweight champion and is currently No.4 in the UFC bantamweight rankings. As Garbrandt gets ready to face Rob Font at the UFC Fight Night 188 event. We look at the incredible rise and swift fall of Cody Garbrandt.

Cody Garbrandt’s journey to the UFC championship

Garbrandt made his UFC debut at the UFC 182 event against Marcus Brimage on January 3, 2015. ‘No Love’ came into this fight on the back of  5 consecutive victories since his professional MMA debut. Garbrandt did not disappoint in his UFC debut as he defeated Brimage via a third round TKO.

Since then, Garbrandt did not look back, and on the back of five consecutive victories, set himself a match for the UFC title. Garbrandt faced ‘The Dominator’ for the UFC bantamweight title at UFC 207 on December 30, 2016. ‘No Love’ showed his class in that fight as twice he knocked Cruz down before he eventually won the fight via unanimous decision.

This fight was the one that really showed what Garbrandt was capable of and how he was all set for UFC greatness.

The fall of Cody Garbrandt

However, this was to be the beginning of a period of downfall for Garbrandt. The champion was set to face T.J. Dillashaw at the UFC 213 event but had to pull out because of a back injury. The two fighters eventually competed at the UFC 217 event and even though ‘No Love’ performed well in the first round, it wasn’t enough. Dillashaw won the fight in the second round via a technical knockout.

Garbrandt then faced Dillashaw in a rematch at UFC 227 but lost because of a technical knockout in the first round itself. ‘No Love’ next faced Pedro Munhoz at UFC 235 and again lost via a first-round Knockout. After suffering three losses in a row, Garbrandt was set to return against Raphael Assuncao, however, he had to pull out of the fight because of kidney problems.

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‘No Love’ won that fight and showed a glimpse of the former champion in him. On August 7, 2020, it was announced that Garbrandt might move to the flyweight division. However, on October 2, 2020, it was reported that injuries stopped his plans as the fighter had to pull out of his next fight because of a torn bicep.

Later it was revealed that Garbrandt had tested positive for Covid-19 and was also suffering from thrombosis, brain fog, and pneumonia.

Garbrandt is one of the most talented fighters in the UFC and although his career has been derailed a bit. It would interest many to see how Garbrandt does in his return to action against Rob Font.