UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno gives an honest assessment on Cody Garbrandt’s recent career skid.
From being an undefeated UFC champion just five years ago, Cody Garbrandt’s recent career trajectory has been predominantly downward. Beginning in 2017, “No Love” has been on a 1-5 run, with four of those losses ending via KO or TKO.
Reigning flyweight champion Brandon Moreno saw it all happen, and he couldn’t help but feel for Garbrandt.
“It was sad,” Moreno told MMA Junkie’s Danny Segura in a recent interview. “You get carried away by the hype because they start doing all the promos, and they start promoting Cody Garbrandt, and you kind of start believing like, ‘Hey, he could be something interesting in the division.’
“But then what happened happened, and you start reflecting on a sober mind. It was a tough scene for Cody. He was knocked out at 135 pounds. His chin was touched. He cuts the weight – who knows how the brain was? Then you give him a Kai Kara-France, who hits very hard, and I know it because I already fought him. It wasn’t a good situation for him, and it’s sad.
“Of course, on the money side, a fight with Cody Garbrandt would’ve been very good, but Kara-France did what he had to do, and he looked great.”
Moreno, who takes on Deiveson Figueiredo for the third time this weekend at UFC 270, is familiar with the harsh realities of their chosen profession. And he has nothing but well-wishes for Garbrandt.
“It’s so crazy. This shows you how cruel the sport can be. I love the sport, but I’m aware that this sport is rough. It’s f–ked. It’s ugly.
“But yeah, being at the highest of highs to now going through a very difficult time, I’m not going to beat a man while he’s down. I just hope that he finds a lot of clarity and that he does well in whatever he wants to do next.”
The 30-year-old Garbrandt made his 125-pound debut against Kai Kara-France at UFC 269 in December. He lost via first-round TKO.