Morning report: Cody Garbrandt reflects on losses to TJ Dillashaw, says they will fight again in the future

Last weekend, Gilbert Burns fell short in his fight for the welterweight title against former training partner Kamaru Usman, losing by knockout in the third round at UFC 258. It could have been different for Burns. In the first round, “Durinho” hit Usman with a series of overhand rights, but was unable to finish the champion. After the fight, Burns said he was overly aggressive and “Cody Garbradt crazy” in his search for the knockout, a reference to Garbrandt’s two fights with his own rival-turned teammate, TJ Dillashaw. And, coincidentally, Garbrandt himself talked about it before UFC 258.

“Definitely, and it’s not me,” Garbrandt said to Joe Rogan when asked about being more emotionally involved than before. “So, for me to go in there and have this, just an example of (makes an angry face). I don’t need to do this.

“It was great, I was a world champion, I feel I needed to defend, many other things, the history of that, the injury coming out of a year. I just wasn’t mentally ready to go out there and fight that physically made up for it. “

Garbrandt and Dillashaw fought for the first time in 2017. It was Garbrandt’s first defense of his rooster title and after hurting Dillashaw in the first round, Garbrandt became super aggressive and was knocked out in the second. The two faced off nine months later and Garbrandt was eliminated again, this time in the first round and in a similar fashion. Reflecting on the losses, Garbrandt now sees the many mistakes he took with him in these struggles, not in physical preparation, but mentally, and says that these losses may have been a blessing in disguise.

“I think TJ caught me at a time when I was mentally not in the best frame of mind to go out there and be a champion and that’s why he was taken from me,” said Garbrandt. “He capitalized and I look back, I keep going back to those fights, and it’s a little insanity. You have to be crazy to repeat the same thing expecting a different result and that is what I was doing … Looking back, retrospective is 2020 always in a fight, but I am grateful for that. I feel that if I had come out and defended the title, I probably wouldn’t be as hungry and motivated as I am today and it will help me in the next five years of my career or as long as I am going to fight for. “

After his second loss to Dillashaw, Garbrandt lost another fight, a knockout to Pedro Munhoz in a similar way to Dillashaw’s defeats, before finally managing to hit the ship with a knockout of the year over Raphael Assunção in 2020. With the impressive victory, Garbrandt now it is once again a constant concern in both the bantamweight and flyweight and he credits a change in mentality for having come back from the edge of the abyss.

“Maintaining enthusiasm, I think is the main thing,” said Garbrandt. “I was not excited. I felt like I was just following the rules. There are many other things, many things can happen, but I am just blaming myself, because that is all I can control. What I do, how I react to things, and I was not the person I am during this type of tribulation in my life. I grew up with it. I was 24-25 years old. I am 29 years old now. I see the game differently. “

Garbrandt is not the only former bantamweight champion to face tribulations in recent years. After knocking out Garbrandt a second time, Dillashaw dropped to £ 125 to seek a second world title. Instead, those dreams turned to ashes when he was knocked out in 32 seconds by Henry Cejudo and then failed an EPO drug test, vacated his bantamweight title and was suspended for two years. Dillashaw has officially become eligible to compete again starting in January, and although Garbrandt says he has put aside any resentment towards his former teammate, he believes the two will meet again in the future and he will have a chance to show to the world, and Dillashaw, his true self.

“It doesn’t mean that I didn’t like TJ. I don’t agree with many things that have happened, but this is so far in the past, I’m outdated, ”said Garbrandt. “But definitely, thinking about it, my mental state was not what it should be to go against a guy like TJ. We can move quickly to when he was attacked and this and that, TJ can be in that. He can be in this thing and still can’t beat me when I’m focused and mentally there and I’m there and I’m excited. I’m glad he’s coming back. He has to prove himself and this is a big fight for me to return to in the future. It will happen. “

---

Champion. Kamaru Usman survives an initial scare, submits Gilbert Burns with a flurry of punches in the UFC 258 main event.

Next. Kamaru Usman asks for Jorge Masvidal’s rematch: ‘This time I’m going to put him in the coffin’.

Aggressive. After hurting Kamaru Usman, Gilbert Burns admits he has ‘driven Cody Garbrandt crazy’.

Power of the stars. Dana White on Kamaru Usman’s star potential: ‘He’s the complete package’.

Hannah Montana. Miley Cyrus answers Julian Marquez’s Valentine’s Day call.

Hard. Jiu-Jitsu champion Rodolfo Vieira scores after a submission defeat at UFC 258.

---

UFC 258 Post Fight Press Conference.

UFC 258 Post Show.

UFC 259 Promotion.

The fighters predict the main event this weekend.

Usman calls for the Masvidal rematch.

Darren Till and Mike Perry have a live chat.

---

For the next. Matchmaking after UFC 258.

Jack Slack. Describing what happened at UFC 258.

---

Burns.

We are making a journey with this one.

The lethal toe taps.

I would watch.

Reserve.

Kicks in the legs.

Feeling good.

JDS is not moving on.

Fight poster.

---

JP Buys (9-2) vs. Bruno Silva (10-5-2); UFC Fight Night, March 20.

Ayaka Hamasaki (21-3) vs. Kanna Asakura (18-4); RIZIN 27, March 21.

Raulian Paiva (20-3) vs. David Dvorak (19-3); UFC Fight Night, May 22.

---

Thanks for reading and see you tomorrow.

---

---

If you find something you would like to see in the Morning Report, click @JedKMeshew on Twitter and let them know about it. Also follow MMAFighting on Instagram and like us in the Facebook.