Garbrandt has some firepower in those hands! Big knockout win for @Cody_NoLove! #UFCPittsburgh https://t.co/Hpq8SZd6IW
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) February 22, 2016
Cody Garbrandt showed why he's one of the most exciting bantamweight prospects in the UFC tonight (Sunday, Feb. 21, 2016) at UFC Fight Night 83 inside CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pa., by dispatching his opponent Augusto Mendes in the very first round by convincing knockout.
Garbrandt was originally set to fight John Lineker, but the Brazilian came down with Dengue Fever less than a week before the card which opened up the door for undefeated Mendes to try his hand in the UFC.
Mendes had accepted the catchweight fight of 140 pounds on just six days notice and agreed to drop an insane 26 pounds to make the weight, but came up short and will forfeit 20 percent of his purse.
Nobody is sure just what effect that drastic weight cut may have had on his performance, but one thing is certain: the fight didn't last very long.
Mendes tried to go toe to toe with Garbrandt, a former amateur boxer with a 32-1 record, a decision that ultimately hit him like a ton of bricks in the form of a 1-2 that appeared to shut out the lights.
Although Garbrandt celebrated as veteran referee Mario Yamasaki jumped between them, it turned out that the fight wasn't stopped, leading to some likely unnecessary punches before Yamasaki officially called it off.
In the post-fight interview, Garbrandt clarified that he didn't want to keep fighting but that Yamasaki hadn't stopped the fight so he went in for the kill.
"I saw his eyes roll back in his head. He was done. Knockout."
Garbrandt moves to 8-0 (3-0 UFC), while Mendes suffers his first defeat and falls to 5-1. Having done the UFC a solid, however, he's likely to get another chance under a full camp.
For continuous coverage of the entire UFC Fight Night 83 card click here.
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