Garbrandt Draws Arce For UFC 285 In March

Former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt will put an end to his 125-pound experiment and return to the weight class that made him famous when he collides with former “Contender Series” standout Julio Arce as part of the upcoming UFC 285 pay-per-view (PPV) event, scheduled for Sat., March 4, 2023 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

That’s according to Eurosport NL.

At one point Garbrandt (12-5) was considered the best bantamweight in the promotion and one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the sport, but a knockout loss to TJ Dillashaw sent the 31 year-old “No Love” into a 1-5 free fall over the last five years. It’s not unrealistic to think his spot on the roster could be in jeopardy with another defeat.

Arce, 33, fell to 18-6 after losing a unanimous decision to Montel Jackson at UFC 281 back in November. Following a promising start to his UFC career — which included back-to-back wins over Dan Ige and Daniel Teymur — the New York native scraped by with a mediocre 3-4 record across his next seven and remains unranked at 135 pounds.

Stopping Garbrandt would certainly be a nice feather in his cap.

UFC 285 does not yet have a headlining act but several bouts are already attached to the March 4 fight card, including the strawweight showdown between Jessica Penne and Tabatha Ricci. In addition, Farid Basharat will collide with Da’Mon Blackshear in a bantamweight affair while Viviane Araujo and Amanda Ribas hook ‘em up at 125 pounds.

Expect more UFC 285 fight card announcements in the coming weeks.