Former Ultimate Fighting Championship beltholder
Cody
Garbrandt is getting what he asked for.
At UFC 296, Garbrandt (14-5) laid waste to Brian
Kelleher with one punch, putting himself on his first win
streak since starting his career undefeated which culminated in
winning the bantamweight belt in 2016. The knockout was his first
stoppage in three over three years, and he used his post-fight
interview to call out former flyweight king Deiveson
Figueiredo (22-3-1). The promotion has elected to put that
together for UFC 300, according to Ag.
Fight on Thursday. The two will collide on April 13 at the
T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, and it was subsequently confirmed by
Figueiredo on his Instagram
Stories on Thursday.
Garbrandt returned to his victorious ways in March 2023 when he
captured a decision over Trevin
Jones, and he followed that by wiping out Kelleher in December.
Those two triumphs put a rough 1-5 stretch in the rear-view mirror,
which saw him lose by knockout four times in that stretch. Along
the way, his only win came against Raphael
Assuncao in a “Knockout of the Year” contender in 2020.
Ex-flyweight kingpin Figueiredo shifted gears at the age of 35,
moving up to bantamweight after claiming the weight cuts to 125
pounds took too much of a toll on his body. His trip up in weight
worked out, as he outworked and busted up Rob Font to
prevail by clear-cut decision. Facing Font concluded a four-fight
stretch—the only such stretch in UFC history—where he fought
Brandon
Moreno four times in a row for divisional gold. “Daico”
ultimately lost the tetralogy match by doctor stoppage at UFC
283.
UFC 300 still does not have a headliner on tap, although UFC head
Dana White promised that upwards of three title fights could sit on
the marquee. One championship bout is currently on the slate, as
Weili
Zhang will look to defend her strawweight crown against
countrywoman Xiaonan Yan.
Other bouts on the billing include a no. 1 lightweight contender
match between Charles
Oliveira and Arman
Tsarukyan, a potential light heavyweight title eliminator
battle when Jiri
Prochazka takes on Aleksandar
Rakic and a featherweight pairing of Aljamain
Sterling vs. Calvin
Kattar.