Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bantamweight titleholder Cody Garbrandt was planning to drop down to 125 pounds for a Deiveson Figueiredo title fight; however, Brandon Moreno spoiled those plans with a spirited performance against “Daico” at UFC 256, forcing an immediate rematch.
Since “No Love” has already been out of action since last June, a knockout victory over Raphael Assuncao at UFC 250, the idea of waiting on the bench for Figueiredo and Moreno to settle their differences simply wasn’t an option.
So how about a Jose Aldo fight in the interim?
“That’s a great fight for me,” Garbrandt told Aaron Bronsteter. “It’s Jose Aldo man, the guy’s a legend. No ill will toward the guy, I’m just a competitive guy who wants to fight the best. He looked good in his last fight. Prior to that I feel like he beat Marlon. It’s a great fight.”
Garbrandt (12-3) is hoping to secure the Aldo fight for April.
Aldo, five years older than Garbrandt at 34, is coming off a similar stretch as “No Love,” having recently snapped a three-fight losing streak to get back into the win column. “Junior” (29-7) was last seen outpointing Marlon Vera at UFC Vegas 17 last month in “Sin City.”
Garbrandt and Aldo are separated by just three spots in the official UFC rankings.