Once upon a time, when Dominick Cruz was at the peak of his fighting prowess and had made his mark as arguably the greatest bantamweight in UFC history, he faced relative newcomer Cody Garbrandt at UFC 207 in 2016. Cruz is someone who had defended his bantamweight title against the likes of the future hall of famers Demetrious Johnson and TJ Dillashaw.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
However, what followed was one of the most memorable moments in UFC history. ‘No Love’ handed Cruz his first loss in the UFC to become the new UFC bantamweight champion. And present in the octagon, celebrating with Garbrandt, was a cancer survivor and ‘No Love’s friend, Maddux Maple. It was a promise that the fighter made to Maple that led him to victory. Ahead of his UFC 300 clash against Deivison Figuiredo, we take a look at the heartwarming story of Maple and Garbrandt and what the cancer survivor is up to these days.
Maddux Maple: Living a normal life
Cody Garbrandt would look back on his relationship with Maddux Maple in a recent interview with Eurosport. ‘No Love’ would credit Maddux Maple for “inspiring him” and “saving his life”. The duo met when the fighter was at a low point of life in their hometown of Uhrichsville, Ohio. The teenager, who suffered from leukemia or blood cancer, inspired Garbrandt with his strength and courage in the face of adversity. They made a promise to each other: Maple would take his medicines and get treated without any complaints and ‘No Love’ would make it to the UFC and win a title with the boy by his side.
Maple would come through on his end of the promise, and call Garbrandt six months later, telling him he had had his last treatment of chemotherapy and reminding ‘No Love’ of his promise. Garbrandt, too, would go on to sign with the UFC and defeat Dominick Cruz to become a UFC champion. The first thing he would do after winning the bout is one of the most memorable moments in the sport. ‘No Love’ would wrap his newly-won bantamweight belt around Maple’s waist and celebrate the victory.
And Maple seems to have fully recovered from his leukemia and is still going strong. According to his Instagram page, which is public, Maddux Maple is a senior in his school. Along with his scholastics, the Ohio resident is active in his school’s glee clubs, having appeared in various stage productions according to his Instagram posts. In addition, the cancer survivor also plays tennis.
While Maddux is busy with his high school life, Cody himself is preparing for a new bout.
Garbrandt vs. Figuiredo set for UFC 300
Cody Garbrandt will take on former flyweight champion Deivison Figuiredo in the latter’s second fight at bantamweight on the UFC 300 anniversary mega-card on April 13. Figuiredo, coming off four epic fights against Brandon Moreno at flyweight and a win against Rob Font on his 145-pound debut, has the chance to prove himself against the #3 ranked Garbrandt.
Garbrandt, coming into the bout on a two-fight win streak after a horrible run of form, is the slight underdog. While the two were originally scheduled to face each other in 2020 for the Brazilian’s flyweight title, Garbrandt had to pull out due to a bicep injury.
Whoever wins the bout will be able to make a case for being in the title mix, especially Figuiredo, if he can win in an impressive fashion. Garbrandt, on the other hand, will have the opportunity to reclaim his position at the top of the bantamweight division.
Written by
Edited by
Garima Yadav