Cody Garbrandt and Conor McGregor have had eerily similar paths to the summit of MMA.
Both fighters scored impressive knockout victories against Marcus Brimage in their promotional debuts before winning somewhat anticlimactic decisions in their sophomore bouts.
McGregor was originally scheduled to take on Cole Miller in the UFC’s return to Dublin, but an injury meant Diego Brandao stepped in as a late replacement and ended up getting put away early.
Garbrandt’s original opponent for his third bout, John Lineker, was also forced to withdraw on short notice. Augusto Mendes stepped up to the plate to face ‘No Love’ and just like in Dublin, the Brazilian fighter didn’t make it past the first round.
For their fourth fights, they both squared off against prospects on the cusp of a title shot, but Garbrandt and McGregor both smoked their respective opponents Thomas Almeida and Dustin Poirier in the opening stanza.
In their respective performances that secured them the cracks at seemingly invincible champions, seasoned veterans Takeya Mizugaki and Dennis Siver were on the receiving end of an ass-whoopin’.
Saving the best for last, both of them shocked the world in their title fights. For McGregor it was the sheer speed at which he rendered Jose Aldo unconscious that left fans gasping.
Whereas it was Garbrandt’s ability to literally dance around Dominick Cruz, a man who’s footwork and evasiveness was thought to be years ahead of the competition, was what blew everyone away.
That’s not even mentioning their heavily tattooed bodies, flamboyant dress sense, commitment to the beard and general swagger drawing obvious physical comparisons.
Taking the defeat like a champ https://t.co/HP2yvlKicO
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) December 31, 2016
With McGregor dominating discussions in the combat sports world with his pursuit of a huge crossover super fight against retired boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather, a lot of MMA fighters have been eyeing up swapping the cage for the ring.
Jose Aldo has already confirmed an interest in trying his hand at boxing while Nate Diaz has gone one step further by applying for a boxing licence in the state of Nevada. Both fighters were criticised and labelled as one of McGregor’s lemmings for their moves, and now Garbrandt is receiving similar treatment for his recent activity on social media.
He put the feelers out with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions for a potential crossover spectacle against WBA and The Ring lightweight champion Jorge Linares.
https://twitter.com/Cody_Nolove/status/829535452788989952
https://twitter.com/Cody_Nolove/status/829754881191731200
https://twitter.com/Cody_Nolove/status/829757439025090560
Before you jump on Garbrandt for seemingly copying McGregor’s style, consider this – on paper, he has a far better chance of transitioning to boxing than ‘the Notorious’.
While McGregor came from a boxing background and claimed a national title at U16 level, Garbrandt had a very successful amateur pugilist, finishing up with an impressive record of 32-1.
Also, there’s the fact that McGregor isn’t the first MMA fighter to try his hand at boxing. The man who breezed past him in Cage Warriors, Joseph Duffy, successfully made that transition. The Donegal native racked up a 7-0 professional boxing record when he took a hiatus from MMA, solidifying his position as a crossover hipster.
After all, he did it before it was cool.
Catch up with this week’s episode of 888sport Football Friday Live
