Ex-UFC champion sends message to fans after underwhelming Atlanta loss

One former UFC champion is keeping his head up after suffering his second loss in a row at UFC Atlanta last weekend.

Headlined by a welterweight bout between Kamaru Usman and Joaquin Buckley, UFC Atlanta saw former UFC titleholder Usman snap a three-fight skid and earn his first win since 2021 when he took a largely dominant unanimous decision over Buckley to close out the night.

Two-time UFC Strawweight Champion Rose Namajunas also returned to the win column in the co-main event when she snapped Miranda Maverick’s four-fight win streak, but earlier on the main card another former UFC titleholder came up short in his first outing in more than a year.

Kamaru Usman (red gloves) fights Joaquin Buckley (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night at State Farm Arena. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Cody Garbrandt Reacts After UFC Atlanta Loss

Taking on longtime UFC veteran Raoni Barcelos as part of the UFC Atlanta main card, former UFC Bantamweight Champion Cody Garbrandt dropped a unanimous decision to the Brazilian after 15 minutes of action.

The fight marked Garbrandt’s return to the cage for the first time since he was submitted by Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 300 in April of last year, and despite finding himself on a two-fight skid “No Love” indicated that there’s still plenty of fight left in him with an Instagram post several days after the event.

“A warrior’s greatest armor is not made of metal, but of their unbreakable will.”

"No Love" At A Career Crossroads

Gabrandt joined the UFC as an undefeated talent in 2015, and the Team Alpha Male-product quickly endeared himself to fans when he knocked out four out of his first five UFC opponents to bring his professional record to 10-0.

A 5-0 start to his UFC career was enough for the UFC to book Garbrandt into a title fight with Dominick Cruz at UFC 207, where “No Love” dominated the future Hall of Famer over the course of five rounds to win the bantamweight belt in one of the most incredible championship performances in UFC history.

Cody Garbrandt is declared the winner and new champion following his victory against Dominick Cruz during UFC 207. — Cody Garbrandt is declared the winner and new champion following his victory against Dominick Cruz during UFC 207 at T-Mobile Arena. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Garbandt’s title reign was cut short by his former teammate T.J. Dillashaw at UFC 217, which kicked off a run of three-straight stoppage losses before the 33-year-old finally returned to the win column with a vicious knockout against Raphael Assunção at UFC 250.

The former bantamweight king fell to Rob Font before Garbrandt was knocked out in a one-off flyweight appearance opposite Kai Kara-France, and after a significant layoff “No Love” returned to score back-to-back wins in 2023 but now finds himself on another two-fight skid after UFC Atlanta.

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