Cody Garbrandt’s return to bantamweight will come against Julio Arce.
Garbrandt (12-5 MMA, 7-5 UFC) meets Arce (18-6 MMA, 5-4 UFC) at UFC 285 on March 4 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Both fighters confirmed the news on social media after an initial report by Eurosport NL.
Former UFC 135-pound champ Garbrandt will return to his original home after a failed stint at flyweight against Kai Kara-France at UFC 269. Garbrandt has lost five of his past six. His lone win in that stretch came in a buzzer-beating knockout of Raphael Assuncao at UFC 250. “No Love” saw two matchups with Rani Yahya scrapped after the Brazilian had to withdraw due to injury on both occasions.
Arce is 2-2 since moving back down to bantamweight. After defeating Daniel Santos by unanimous decision at UFC 273 in April, Arce was defeated by Montel Jackson at UFC 281 in November.
With the addition, the UFC 285 lineup includes:
- Jessica Penne vs. Tabatha Ricci
- Farid Basharat vs. Da’Mon Blackshear
- Viviane Araujo vs. Amanda Ribas
- Julio Arce vs. Cody Garbrandt
