Quote: Cody Garbrandt Is Not Invincible

Reigning World Series of Fighting (WSOF) bantamweight champion Marlon Moraes is widely considered to be the best 135 pounder competing outside of the UFC and after defending his title for the fifth consecutive time this past weekend (Dec. 31, 2016) in New York, he is once again a free agent.

While it’s unclear where he’ll end up, the Brazilian made it clear that he’s interested in fighting the best:

“My idea is to fight the best and be valued for that,” Moraes told MMAjunkie. “I have what it takes to fight the best, I’m absolutely certain.

“Let’s see what we’re going to do. I’m excited, and I hope good offers arrive.”

With that being said, Moraes is well aware that the best fighters typically compete in the UFC, but he admitted that the offer must be right:

“The best are in the UFC,” Moraes said. “It doesn’t take an MMA expert to say that. Certainly, the best are there. But let’s see, let’s see if a good offer comes along and we can fight them and see what I can do. Because I’m sure I can arrive there in impressive fashion – not just there, but in any event, against any athlete in my division.”

Interesting enough, the UFC bantamweight strap was on the line last Friday (Dec. 30, 2016) just one day prior to Moraes’ fight. In a thrilling upset, Cody Garbrandt beat Dominick Cruz to steal the title and Moraes said he was ‘motivated’ by the fight:

“It was a very good fight, with an extremely high technical level,” Moraes said. “It was the day before my fight, and it was good. It really motivated me. And I saw that I’m at that level. It got me very happy and confident for my fight.”

As far as Garbrandt goes, Moraes admits that “No Love” is a talented fighter, although not one that the Brazilian feels is unbeatable:

“I thought Cody fought very well,” Moraes said. “He’s a very tough athlete, very good. That’s it, he’s good, but not invincible.”

Stay tuned to LowKickMMA as more news regarding Moraes’ free agency unfolds.