Cody Garbrandt Discusses Mental Status Heading Into UFC Return
Cody Garbrandt was once on top of the mixed martial arts (MMA) world.
In December 2016, he badly outclassed Dominick Cruz to become the UFC’s bantamweight champion. The sky seemed to be the limit for the charismatic knockout artist. He had it all – a peerless winning streak of impressive victories, a UFC title, and the looks and fame to become one of the fight game’s biggest stars.
But as the fight game has been known to do to even the best, reality came crashing down on “No Love.” He was scheduled to coach The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) opposite former teammate-turned-rival TJ Dillashaw. The two were then tentatively set to battle for the belt at July 2017’s UFC 213, but a back injury to Garbrandt forced it to be delayed. Yet that was only the start of his troubles.
Rematch Went South
Garbrandt and Dillashaw finally fought at UFC 217 that November. Dillashaw survived getting rocked early to come back and finish “No Love” in the second round. It was a crushing defeat that Dillashaw pulled from the verge of his own loss. Garbrandt received an immediate rematch at last August’s UFC 227, but the result was even worse the second time around. Dillashaw demolished him in the first round, sending him into a sort of bantamweight purgatory as long as “The Viper” holds the belt.
Garbrandt has been out of action since. He’s been enjoying the time off welcoming his new son into the world. We’ve heard little from the man who was once supposed to be the UFC’s new bantamweight superstar in that time. He’s now set to return against Pedro Munhoz at March 2’s blockbuster UFC 235 event from Las Vegas. Speaking during the recent UFC 235 press conference via MMAjunkie, Garbrandt opened up about his mindset heading into that return:
“I feel great. I suffered defeats to T.J., I was able to refocus myself, my mind, my body, I was able to heal up and get back out there. It was back to the hard work and that’s it. Get back to the hard work. I’ve got to watch my son grow up. It’s been 10 months now. It was amazing to watch that.
“I’m enjoying my life, I’m healthier than ever. I’m excited to get out there. This is my passion to fight. I’ve just got to go out there March 2 and put on an awesome performance and climb my way back to the title shot and reclaim my throne.”
Climb Back
Garbrandt is now focused on one thing. That’s regaining his old title, but he has a lot of work to do to get back to that position. It all starts with the No. 13 Munhoz, a somewhat unknown but still dangerous opponent. If he does win, Garbrandt also has to wait for the title picture to play out with Dillashaw chasing a flyweight rematch with Henry Cejudo. If the champion does stay at bantamweight, his obvious next contender is Marlon Moraes.
“No Love” can’t control that aspect of his career, however. He’s more fixated on beating himself at UFC 235, no offense to Munhoz. If he can tackle the mental part of fighting, he’ll move on to getting back in the title hunt:
“It’s me versus me in there,” Garbrandt said. “No offense to Pedro Munhoz, he brings a lot of skills and everyone is tough in this organization. But it’s me verse me in there. I’m focused on myself and getting back to my throne.”
Garbrandt exhibited knockout power unlike that we’ve ever seen at bantamweight during his lightning-paced rise to title contention in 2016. He has all the skills to become the UFC champ once again, but the major questions about his chin and recklessness remain.
The journey towards proving he can overcome those obstacles starts at UFC 235. Are you picking Garbrandt to bounce back from his slide?
