cody garbrandt enters UFC 326 describing a personal reset that he says has finally brought peace after years of volatility, as he tries to halt a two-fight losing skid. Speaking during UFC 326 media day, he framed fighting as the stabilizing force in his life, even as his recent results and the stakes of Saturday’s matchup keep the spotlight bright.
What happens when Cody Garbrandt says “fighting saved my life”?
At media day ahead of UFC 326, Cody Garbrandt described a life shaped by instability and the ways combat sports became his route out. He said he grew up poor in a small town about 90 minutes outside of Cleveland, and that the family environment around him did not always provide strong examples. Wrestling became an early anchor—he was an Ohio state champion—but he said he did not find a full escape until he shifted his focus to MMA.
Garbrandt connected that journey to the emotional experience of competition itself, saying that inside the octagon he feels “at home” and “at peace. ” He described how growing up surrounded by chaos and violence shaped his relationship to calm, explaining that for a long time he felt like he needed chaos to feel alive. In his telling, that conditioning followed him even when things improved—creating a sense that something would inevitably go wrong.
He also spoke about the shift he felt after reaching the sport’s highest milestone. Garbrandt became UFC champion in 2016, but he said the aftermath did not bring stability. Instead, he described a period where new people entered his circle and he came to believe he was surrounded by the wrong influences, which he said cost him dearly. Professionally, the downturn is clear in his recent stretch: after losing the belt 11 months after winning it, he has gone 3-7 in his past 10 fights.
What if UFC 326 becomes a “coming out party” for Xiao Long?
Across the cage, Xiao Long positioned UFC 326 as a major opportunity. Long is set to face former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt in Saturday’s featured prelim at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Speaking at Wednesday’s media day through a Chinese-language interpreter, Long said he expects a strong stylistic matchup and framed the booking as a sign of confidence from the promotion.
Long emphasized what the moment represents: facing a former champion, one he acknowledged as popular and well known in the division, creates a platform to introduce himself to a broader audience. Long said he will not miss the chance and wants to “let everybody know” him.
On paper, Long’s professional record lists 37 fights, which would suggest a larger volume of experience than Garbrandt. But Long also raised questions about the accuracy of that tally. He said there are mistakes in his fight record and that some bouts included were not “big professional fights, ” even if he still views them as meaningful experience. He pointed to the last two years—referencing his time reaching the Road to UFC and a bout with a grappler—as development he values, while also acknowledging that the record may not fully reflect the type of top-level experience fans might assume from the raw number.
What happens when focus replaces volatility for cody garbrandt?
For Garbrandt, the fight week storyline is not only about stopping a skid or answering questions raised by a 3-7 run over his past 10 fights. It is also about whether the sense of balance he says he has found can translate into performance. He described his current perspective in simple terms: “I’m winning at life, ” pointing to fatherhood and a calmer day-to-day routine.
Garbrandt said he has an “amazing son” who turns 8 next week and a daughter who is two months old. He described a camp without the chaos he grew up with, saying he has been able to focus on training and then shift fully into being a father outside the gym—changing diapers, feeding bottles, helping with school, and staying busy with extracurricular activities.
In his view, that routine has helped him quiet the inner turmoil that once felt normal. He emphasized balance, describing an approach that avoids spiraling into “what if” thinking about a fight. As UFC 326 approaches, the question is whether that mental steadiness—paired with the motivation he expressed about feeling free in the cage when confident and healthy—can show up under the bright lights of a bout that also carries clear opportunity for an opponent determined to use the moment as a breakout stage.
