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When Cody Garbrandt outclassed Dominick Cruz to capture the UFC bantamweight title back in 2016, it looked as though “No Love” was poised to rule the 135-pound roost for the foreseeable future, based on his championship blend of speed and power.
Then it all fell apart.
But after three straight knockout losses, Garbrandt — still just 28 — believes he’s corrected the errors that led to his downfall. Now, with the help of striking coach Mark Henry, “No Love” is ready to shock the division with his triumphant return to “Sin City.”
“When I’m on, no one in the world can beat me,” Garbrandt told MMA Fighting. “I truly believe I’ve corrected a lot of my errors that I needed to correct. When I’m at peace with myself, I can cause a lot of chaos inside that Octagon because I know that my life is good, it’s in order and I can let that savagery out in the Octagon and that’s what I’m prepared to do.”
Garbrandt (11-3) returns to the cage at UFC 250, where he’ll battle longtime bantamweight contender Raphael Assuncao in the three-round pay-per-view (PPV) co-main event. The action takes place this Sat. night (June 6, 2020) inside UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“I’ve battled my demons,” Garbrandt said. “I’m here to take the throne again. Whoever that is when my time comes for another title shot, I’ll be ready. I’m going to capitalize on it. I’m going to hold onto this title until it’s time to walk away from this sport.”
Garbrandt stands at No. 9 in the official rankings, four spots below Assuncao at No. 5.
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 250 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN+/Fight Pass “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ESPN+/ESPN at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
For the rest of the UFC 250 fight card and line up click here.