By Cassandra Cousineau of LVSportsBiz.com
There’s a saying, “Sometimes you win, and sometimes you learn.” When it comes to mixed martial arts, bounteous are the lessons to be learned by the time a fighter official lays down the gloves. It wasn’t Cody Garbrandt’s night. On Saturday night in Las Vegas at the UFC Apex building, the once two-division contender went down to Rob Font in a unanimous decision losing all but one round in their bantamweight bout at UFC Vegas 27.
But the fact is Garbrandt showed up in Las Vegas a different man, a fighter looking to get back on a winning streak after battling a formidable foe in his own home — COVID-19. For 11 months, the climb back to competition was as mental as it was physically draining.
The novel coronavirus complications couldn’t have come at a worse time for the 29-year-old. He shined in a spectacular second round knockout win of Raphael Assunaciao at UFC 250 in Las Vegas June 6, 2020.
But then Garbrandt (12-4) was forced out of action by kidney issues. His body was shutting down. He felt flu-like symptoms that quickly escalated to inflamed lymph nodes that made it difficult for him to walk. He gathered himself into an Uber to the hospital, was sent home, and then readmitted after urinating blood.
Garbrandt’s road into the UFC octagon has been paved with gruesome setbacks and was arduous to put it mildly. The man they call. “No Love,” had to rely on heart and will during what he called a “horrible” time.
“I had blood thinners. I had pneumonia. I had vertigo. Vertigo was horrible. And the blood clots as well,” Garbrandt lamented during fight week. “It’s almost easier to have an injury than having COVID.”
Perhaps the Ohio native should add organ damage to that list as well. He’s had to contend with organ damage since before the pandemic began.
Garbrandt had originally planned to move down to flyweight to challenge Deiveson Figueiredo for his title in November 2020. However, what he thought was a torn bicep eventually was diagnosed as blood clots, and forced him out of the bout. It’s going to be a process to once again be considered a threat in one of UFC’s most competitive divisions.
I always took COVID serious. You know, obviously, people are dying from it. But like I said, I take care of myself. I’m healthy; I rest; I eat; I recover well. I’m very well-conditioned and that if I had it, it would be like a flu bug, kinda. Man, it was not a flu bug for me. It was intense, but you know, I think everything happens for a reason. — UFC fighter Cody Garbrandt
Garbrandt gave it his best shot Saturday, but wasn’t ever really in the fight against Font, who had the highest ever significant strike differential in UFC bantamweight history at 180 to 52.
On a four-fight winning streak, Font (19-4) had a career night. ESPN ranked Garbrandt No. 4 and Font at No. 5 in the world at 135 pounds.
UFC has scrapped a lot of fights due to COVID-19. The majority of fighters recovered and have rebooked within a matter of weeks. That wasn’t the case for Garbrandt. After getting through what he said was a “mental fog” for about six months, he managed to ease back into training.
Currently, the Strip is looking like the world prior to January of 2020, with parking scarce at nearly every property. Vaccination rates in Clark County are hovering at just under 40%, and the city is teeming with tourists and locals escaping a fifteen month long pandemic induced cabin fever. Even so, UFC continues to hold events at Apex with COVID-19 protocols still in place.
UFC fight boss Dana White and his team of doctors and staff deserve credit for continuing to make such an effort when the general public has long since waived the white flag on pandemic protocols. Even if the promotion’s president himself has never been seen publicly wearing a mask, the MMA fight promotion he leads prioritizes the business of COVID safety.
“We had to create a bubble so that athletes wouldn’t end up with COVID and all these fights falling out, but the media was being so crazy about the whole COVID thing you had to make the media feel safe,” White told Yahoo Sports. “In Jacksonville, everything is opening up again, even Vegas is gonna be open June 1st. There’s some things that are gonna be set in place, we’re still gonna have a bubble for the athletes and things like that but as far as the fans, you wear a mask or do not wear a mask. It’s up to you, it’s your decision.”
Since the beginning of 2020, UFC has invested in some of the most pronounced COVID-19 protocols of any sports organization.
Garbrandt was transported to the hospital after his loss on Saturday night and didn’t speak to the media. His pre-fight interviews indicated recovery was still on his mind.
Garbrandt’s learned a lot over the past year. Most of which has very little to do with his actual profession of fighting.