The former bantamweight champion won a Fight of the Night bonus on Saturday for his one-round slugfest at UFC 235 that ended with him being knocked out for the third time in three straight Octagon appearances. He’d previously been KO’d in a pair of title bouts with rival T.J. Dillashaw.
Making the finish even more memorable is that the way Garbrandt’s loss played out was eerily similar to the two Dillashaw fights. “No Love” stood in the pocket and threw hands and all three times he ended up getting the worst of it.
On Monday, Garbrandt posted a statement to Instagram in which he sounded unshaken by the outcome.
“Kill or be killed, that’s how this shit goes!” he wrote, adding, “I want to thank everyone on this journey! I love this fight game. I’m healing up and will be back soon.”
The post also contains a quote from former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz: “In times of adversity and change, we really discover who and what we’re made of.”
Garbrandt, 27, has seen a sharp reversal of fortunes since beginning his pro MMA career with 11 straight wins, nine by knockout. He defeated Dominick Cruz at UFC 207 by unanimous decision back on Dec. 30, 2016 to capture the UFC bantamweight title and has not tasted victory since.
