Former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt is set to return at the UFC’s first domestic pay-per-view event of 2023.
Multiple people with knowledge of the promotion’s plans confirmed to MMA Fighting that a matchup between Garbrandt and Juilo Arce is set for UFC 285, which takes place March 4 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will serve as the first of two pay-per-views for the UFC in March. EuroSport was first to report the booking.
Garbrandt will look to get back on track as he’s dropped five of his past six fights, including a move down to flyweight at UFC 269 in December 2021 that saw him lose by first-round TKO to Kai Kara-France. “No Love” finished Raphael Assuncao at UFC 250 in June 2020 for his most recent win, and prior to that, Garbrandt hadn’t won a bout since capturing the bantamweight title against Dominick Cruz nearly four years earlier.
Arce is 2-2 since making the move to the UFC bantamweight division, which includes a TKO finish of Andre Ewell at UFC Vegas 32 in July 2021, along with a unanimous decision win against Daniel Santos at UFC 273 in April. In his most recent outing, Arce dropped a decision to Montel Jackson at UFC 281 in November.
