Cody Garbrandt wants a big fight.
At 2-0 in the UFC, and 7-0 overall with six finishes, Garbrandt feels ready to test himself against the UFC bantamweight division's elite. Speaking with Ariel Helwani on Monday's edition of The MMA Hour, Garbrandt discussed his immediate future, placing a target on two fighters' backs in the process.
"[My next fight will be] hopefully in January," Garbrandt said. "[The UFC and I] talked, and I'm just waiting on an opponent. I have a few in mind. I just saw an article [where] John Lineker said he can knock out T.J. [Dillashaw] and [Dominick] Cruz, so I said, 'Hey, if you think you can knock those guys out, let's us scrap and go from there.' I think it's a good fight for my career, a fan favorite."
Lineker is just 1-0 as a bantamweight inside the Octagon, but he previously made a name for himself in the flyweight division, posting an impressive 6-2 record. Despite clearly possessing elite skills and sledgehammer fists, Lineker failed to hit the 125-pound limit on multiple occasions.
His last slip-up -- at UFC 183 against Ian McCall -- forced the UFC's hand, and Lineker made the move to 135 directly after his unanimous decision win at the event.
Since then, he knocked down then submitted Francisco Rivera at UFC 191, proving that his hands of stone care not for divisional borders.
While Lineker is significantly more experienced than Garbrandt, No Love feels that match up would represent a solid test for himself while providing fans with the rock-em, sock-em fireworks they crave.
If that matchup doesn't pan out, however, Garbrandt told Helwani he has another name in mind, too.
"[Bryan] Caraway, he's ducking and dodging everyone," he said. "I just want to beat his ass and get him out of the ring. He's in the top 10 for what reason?"
At 5-2 in the UFC, Caraway, like Lineker, boasts a significant experience advantage over Garbrandt, but the Team Alpha Male product is confident in his skills and in his preparations alongside some of Sacramento's finest fighters.
For that reason, he has no issue with facing a top-level fighter any time, any where.
"I know a lot of the guys who are in the top 10 right now have fights lined up, so two weeks' notice, three weeks' notice, two days, day of, I'm ready to go," Garbrandt said. "I'm always in shape, and I"m just staying ready for a call."
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