UFC 202 Lands Pivotal Bantamweight Bout Between Garbrandt and Mizugaki
The UFC 202: Diaz vs. McGregor 2 fight card continues to grow day by day. The latest addition is a pivotal bantamweight bout between Cody Garbrandt and Takeya Mizugaki.
UFC officials announced the latest addition on Thursday.
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Having already been established as one of the UFC's rising upstarts, Garbrandt (9-0) established himself as a true contender in the bantamweight division with his main event upset of Thomas Almeida on May 29 in Las Vegas. Garbrandt wrecked Almeida, knocking him out less than three minutes into the first round.
Almeida was Garbrandt's first high-profile UFC bout, but it was one in which he left a lasting impression. He'll have to take his game up another notch when he faces Mizugaki, who is a longtime veteran of the sport with a wealth of experience against the division's best fighters.
In 2013 and 2014, Mizugaki (21-9-2) was on an impressive run that rocketed him towards title contention, but had a five-fight winning streak abruptly halted by Dominick Cruz. Now the bantamweight champion, Cruz had just returned from being stripped of the belt, and made a statement by knocking Mizugaki out a minute into their fight.
Mizugaki was then submitted by Aljamain Sterling in his next fight, but has since bounced back with a win over George Roop. Garbrandt represents the next step in Mizugaki's attempt to get back into contention.
UFC 202 is headlined by the controversial rematch between Nate Diaz and Conor McGregor. It takes place on Aug. 20 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
