After their July match-up was postponed due to a neck injury suffered by Rani Yahya, the Brazilian bantamweight and former champ Cody Garbrandt have a new date.
Garbrandt (12-5) and Yahya (28-10-1, 1NC) will now face off at the UFC’s October 1, 2022 Fight Night event. MMA Mania was first to report the news; Garbrandt subsequently confirmed the new date on social media.
Currently mired in a 1-5 slump, “No Love” Garbrandt will be looking to return to the win column after a disastrous foray down to 125 pounds. Making his flyweight debut at UFC 269 last December, Garbrandt was knocked out by Kai Kara-France inside of a round.
Garbrandt’s lone win in his current rough patch came against Raphael Assuncao at UFC 250 in June of 2020. That fight saw the ex-champ land a highlight reel KO of his own. The Team Alpha MMA fighter has lost to Rob Font, Pedro Munhoz, and T.J. Dillashaw (twice) going back to 2017.
Yahya is undefeated in his last three fights, posting a 2-0-1 record in that span. Following a draw against Enrique Barzola (who now calls Bellator MMA home), Yahya has picked up wins over Ray Rodriguez and Kang Kyung-Ho.
The UFC’s October 1, 2022 Fight Night event does not yet have a location, venue, or broadcast plan officially announced. Strawweights Mackenzie Dern and Yan Xiaonan are expected to headline. The following match-ups have been reported for the card:
- Mackenzie Dern vs. Yan Xiaonan
- Leah Letson vs. Chelsea Chandler
- Vinc Pichel vs. Jesse Ronson
- Cheyanne Vlismas vs. Tabatha Ricci
- Randy Costa vs. Guido Cannetti
- Brendan Allen vs. Krzysztof Jotko
- John Castañeda vs. Daniel Santos
- Francisco Trinaldo vs. Randy Brown
- Cody Garbrandt vs. Rani Yahya
