The UFC has many athletes who used to play a different sport before venturing into the MMA world. That list of fighters includes former bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt, who played football. He is scheduled to fight in the opening fight of UFC 300, but before that, we will take a look at his career as a football player.

Cody Garbrandt is a native of Uhrichsville, Ohio. He had a difficult childhood since his father was struggling with addiction. However, his parents separated when he was only a year old, and his stepfather decided to adopt him. Having gotten his first taste in combat sports through boxing, Garbrandt started wrestling and playing football, a means to navigate his aggression, when he went to Claymont High School.

The football career of Cody Garbrandt

The former bantamweight champion was a natural at football. He was a linebacker and won All-State honors for his performances during his junior season when he played for the Claymont Mustangs. Furthermore, Cody Garbrandt would go on to achieve honors as a senior, becoming a Senior National All-American athlete. The statistics from ‘No Love’s time as a football player can be found on the ‘MAXPREPS‘ official website, which provides data on American high school sports.

However, Cody Garbrandt decided to leave football aside and focus his mind on improving his combat skills and spent all his time on wrestling and boxing. The former bantamweight champion was so good at boxing that he racked up a 32-0 record in his amateur career. Then, Garbrandt finally made his MMA debut in 2012.

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Cody Garbrandt became the UFC champion with an 11-0 overall MMA record, defeating one of the best in the division, Dominick Cruz. However, fell off after losing the title in his very next fight against T.J. Dillashaw and had only one win since 2022. However, ‘No Love’ seemed to have found his mojo and came back in 2023 with two consecutive wins. Now, he will be one of the newcomers in his division, former two-time flyweight champion, Deiveson Figueiredo.

‘No Love’ to fight Deiveson Figueiredo

After fighting some of the best in the 125-pound division and winning the title twice, Deiveson Figueiredo will compete in his second fight in the 135-pound division this Saturday. The Brazilian had mixed results in his last five fights with 2 wins, 2 losses, and a draw, decided to move up, and started his bantamweight debut with a bang after securing a unanimous decision win over Rob Font at UFC: Fight Night on ESPN.

On the other hand, when Cody Grabrandt came back to the winning column following his win over Trevin Jones at UFC 285, people were not convinced since he edged past his opponent only by decision. Garbrandt may have had a point to prove as he went on to register a 1st-round knockout win over Brian Kelleher at UFC 296. Now, he will be fighting a former champion and this could prove to be a fight of great significance for both athletes.

Cody Garbrandt’s experience in a variety of sporting disciplines could have been a great advantage when he started out in the MMA scene and went through 11 fights undefeated. But in the wake of his recent wins, fans are wondering if he can get back to his best. What do you think? Drop your comments below.

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