Former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt will look to correct course this July.
Garbrandt (12-5) is set to take on Rani Yahya (28-10-1, 1NC) at a UFC Fight Night event scheduled for July 9, 2022. MMA Fighting was first to report news of the match-up, which Garbrandt subsequently confirmed on social media.
Cody “No Love” has struggled since losing his 135 pound title in 2017, winning but a single fight since that time. After dropping the belt to T.J. Dillashaw, Garbrandt was knocked out in the rematch, then finished by Pedro Munhoz.
A highlight reel KO of Raphael Assuncao at UFC 250 in June of 2020 bought Garbrandt a brief reprieve. But he later lost a decision against Rob Font, and was most recently finished by Kai Kara-France in an ill-fated move to flyweight.
It will be back to bantamweight against Yahya, who debuted in the UFC over a decade ago after a stint in the WEC. In his last two outings, Brazil’s Yahya, 37, has picked up wins over Ray Rodriguez and Kyung Ho Kang. His only loss since March of 2017 came against the durable Ricky Simon; Yahya has amassed a record of 5-1-1 across his last seven fights.
The UFC’s July 9 Fight Night event does not yet have a venue, location, or broadcast plan officially announced. The following fights have been reported for the card:
- Ronnie Lawrence vs. Saidyokub Kakhramonov
- Nina Nunes vs. Cynthia Calvillo
- Antonina Shevchenko vs. Cortney Casey
- Josh Fremd vs. Tresean Gore
- Said Nurmagomedov vs. Douglas Silva de Andrade
- Jamie Pickett vs. Abdul Razak Alhassan
- Caio Borralho vs. Armen Petrosyan
- Cody Garbrandt vs. Rani Yahya
