10. Deiveson Figueiredo vs Cody Garbrandt
This card opener between two champions who knocked out more opponents than not would have been incredible at one point, even solid in 2020 when it was briefly booked for Figgy’s flyweight title, but now it seems like an extremely bad fight for Cody ‘No Love.’ Garbrandt never had a particularly good chin but has lost much of the speed and reflexes which got him his belt back in 2016, and his four knockout losses since then did not help. The back issues he is allegedly dealing with do not help matters either, meaning he can no longer leverage the wrestling pedigree from his youth as he once could.
Garbrandt’s knockout of Brian Kelleher last year may fool some fans into thinking the Cody of old is back, to some degree, but the fight immediately preceding that was poor and the level of competition is nowhere near that of Figueiredo. ‘Deus da Guerra’ is past his prime as well, but he beat an elite fighter in Brandon Moreno just two years ago and was clearly elite himself. Despite looking poor in their fourth fight one year ago, Deiveson’s bantamweight debut went swimmingly as he out-struck and out-wrestled top contender Rob Font five months ago en route to winning a decision. Font dominated Cody for five rounds when they fought, and although MMA math does not work, this fight still feels like a step backwards as Figgy is ranked eighth in the division and Garbrandt is not ranked at all.
The power and counter striking of Figgy should be enough to catch and finish Cody. Although Garbrandt tries to be more patient now, he still has his reckless blitzing moments, has less of the top-tier attributes he used to possess, and does not properly leverage those traits anymore. The fight should be fun, who doesn’t like knockouts? But it feels one-sided on paper and like odd matchmaking given where they sit in the division at present.
Fight Rating: 7/10
