Leading up to UFC 207, UFC legend Forrest Griffin made his official prediction for the UFC 207 co-main event scrap between Dominick Cruz and Cody Garbrandt.
While Griffin admitted that he liked Garbrandt, he believed that the undefeated Team Alpha Male prospect wasn’t quite ready to step into the Octagon with a legend like Cruz. As a result, Griffin picked Cruz to win the fight, and made a bet with Garbrandt regarding the bout.
Sure enough, at UFC 207, Garbrandt stepped into the Octagon with Cruz, and not only beat the champ up on the feet throughout the course of 5 rounds, but also dropped ‘The Dominator’ numerous times in the later rounds of the fight. When the judges scorecards were read, Garbrandt was awarded the unanimous decision win and the UFC bantamweight championship.
Following the fight, Garbrandt made his debut on the UFC’s pound for pound rankings, advancing to spot #5. When Garbrandt’s debut on the list inevitably was covered on the latest UFC’s rankings report video, Forrest Griffin made good on the lost bet and shaved his own head for cameras.
Following Garbrandt’s win there has been much talk of who the newly crowned bantamweight champion will defend his title against first. While Garbrandt has stated that he will give Cruz an immediate rematch, talks of a potential showdown with former teammate TJ Dillashaw have also garnered interest from the MMA community.
In addition, Garbrandt himself has mentioned that he would like to have a superfight with UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo.
“He has wins over my teammates, he’s a legend, and I’d like to test his chin,” Garbrandt told host Ariel Helwani of a potential scrap with Aldo. “I know I hit hard and I’m just getting started.”
“I’m the champ. I just went out there and beat one of the best pound-for-pound, he’s been on the pound-for-pound list for however long now. I want the biggest draw. I think Jose Aldo. I want the biggest challenge. I’m in this sport to challenge myself. I just beat Dominick handily. I’m ready for a bigger challenge. I think Jose Aldo is tough, I respect him, but I want to test his chin. I hit like a Mack Truck.”