Marlon Moraes gets a new opponent for October; Cody Garbrandt fight falls out?

After recovering from COVID-19, Marlon Moraes revealed that the plan was for him to fight Cody Garbrandt in October. It made a lot of sense since Garbrandt finally got back in the win column after over three years and is now right back in the mix for a possible Championship fight in another one or two wins.

Marlon Moraes lost his attempt to become the UFC Bantamweight Champion when Henry Cejudo finished him last year. With Cejudo now retired, the entire landscape of the Bantamweight division has changed.

Combate reported that Marlon Moraes vs Cory Sandhagen is being planned as the October 10th main event. While it's not a #1 contender's fight, it's certainly an important step for either fighter to get closer to a title shot.

Cory Sandhagen faced Aljamain Sterling at UFC 250 in what was assumed to be a title eliminator. Sterling beat Sandhagen in round one via submission and while Dana White hasn't confirmed the fight, newly-crowned Bantamweight Champion Petr Yan is expected to defend his title against Aljamain Sterling next.

Does Cory Sandhagen vs Marlon Moraes make sense?

Marlon Moraes is ranked #1 while Cory Sandhagen is still in the top 5. A win for Marlon Moraes would make it two in a row and potentially secure him another shot at the title if Petr Yan vs Aljamain Sterling happens later this year.

However, those rankings have been put into question as Cody Garbrandt is now at #3 with just one win in his last four fights. Regardless, one thing is for sure - Marlon Moraes is a part of the most-stacked Bantamweight division in UFC history and possibly the second-most stacked division on the roster.

It's going to be fun to see how it plays out. The end result is going to be a series of elite-level Bantamweight fights.