VIDEO | Watch Cody Garbrandt blitz Takeya Mizugaki to earn his bantamweight title shot

https://youtu.be/u-D-ldWtB_s

This Friday, the UFC will return to glimmering Las Vegas, Nevada with UFC 207. The card will be headlined by an anticipated women’s bantamweight title fight between reigning champ Amanda Nunes and returning former champ Ronda Rousey. The co-main event, meanwhile, will occur in the men’s bantamweight division, where brick-fisted challenger Cody Garbrandt will attempt to solve the puzzle that is champion Dominick Cruz.

In advance of this fight, the UFC has released video of the win that earned Garbrandt his shot at the dominant bantamweight champ. That win, which occurred at UFC 202 in August, saw him knock out Japanese veteran Takeya Mizugaki in just 48 seconds.

Watch this Garbrandt blitzkrieg in full at the top of this article!

With his win over Mizugaki, Garbrandt extended his professional record to a perfect 10-0. Five of those wins occurred under the bright lights of the UFC’s Octagon. In his first bout with the organization, he knocked out Marcus Brimage – who was also given the unfortunate task of welcoming Conor McGregor and Jimmie Rivera to the Octagon. In his second bout in the Octagon, Garbrandt took a decision from Henry Briones. In his three most recent bouts, finally, Garbrandt scored first-round knockouts over Augusto Mendes, Thomas Almeida, and of of course, Mizugaki. This streak, when combined with his sizzling beef with Cruz, was more than enough to earn him the bantamweight title shot.

Cruz, on the other hand, will enter this UFC 207 title defense having returned from a long stretch of injuries to reclaim the title from TJ Dillashaw in January. Since then, he has defended the title against a long-time rival in Urijah Faber – who happens to be Garbrandt’s mentor.

Who do you think comes out on top in this compelling bantamweight title showdown? Can Garbrandt land the punch that matters, or will he be outworked by the incredibly talented champion? Sound off, PENN Nation!