Is moving down to Flyweight a wise move for Cody Garbrandt
UFC announces a flyweight title fight between Deiveson Figueiredo and Cody Garbrandt for the main event of UFC 255. This PPV also features another flyweight title fight between Valentina Shevchenko and Jeniffer Maia. But, Cody Garbrandt's move to flyweight will be the center of attraction going into UFC 255 and rightfully so.
At a very young age, Cody Garbrandt became the UFC flyweight champion by beating one of the best fighters in the history of the sport. However, after the unbelievable performance against Dominick Cruz, Cody Garbrandt suffered lost two consecutive fights to TJ Dillashaw in devastating fashion. He would also go on to lose to Pedro Munhoz via first-round TKO.
Many fans believed that the prime days for Cody Garbrandt was over as he looked to make a return against Raphael Assuncao. However, Garbrandt defied the odds again and knocked out Assuncao in a devastating fashion. He impressed everyone with his speed and power, bringing back the memories of old Garbrand who outclassed Dominick Cruz.
After that win, Cody Garbrandt is maybe a couple of fights away from a bantamweight title shot. In this scenario is it wise for Garbrandt to cut an extra 10 pounds and move down to fight a knockout artist such as Deiveson Figueiredo?
Deiveson Figueiredo is a problem for everyone in the flyweight division. He has the power to knock out everyone in the flyweight division. He can even cause problems for the top bantamweights in the world with his power and ground game. So why would Cody Garbrandt drop down to fight Deiveson Figueiredo?
Should Cody Garbrandt move down to flyweight?
It's a brilliant move for Garbrandt who has lost twice to the former bantamweight champion, TJ Dillashaw. Had Garbrandt not move down to flyweight for the title fight he would have fought either Marlon Moraes or Aljamian Sterling. Both fights are tough fights for Cody Garbrandt. He can still win against them but if we look at the skillsets of these fighters Garbrandt will be in a lot of trouble against Sterling or even the bantamweight champion, Petr Yan.
If Garbrandt somehow manages to secure a win over the flyweight champion then it's unlikely that he is going to defend the belt at 125. Garbrandt will look for a title shot at bantamweight and try to create history by becoming a two-division champion.
If Garbrandt has the flyweight title it kind of guarantees him a title shot at the bantamweight division. It will be a huge fight for Garbrandt both for his legacy and financially as he will get the PPV points as the champion.
Even if Garbrandt loses to Deiveson Figueiredo it is not going to affect his bantamweight rankings. However, there is a downside to this move. Cody Garbrandt might lose the hype he has gained after the vicious knockout win over Assuncao.
A lot will depend on how Cody Garbrandt performs after cutting those extra 10 pounds to make the weight for the flyweight title fight with Deiveson Figueiredo.