Yanez batters Garbrandt inside three minutes to hand former champion his eighth loss in 13 fights

Adrian Yanez stopped Cody Garbrandt with a flurry of punches at 2:47 of the first round in their bantamweight preliminary bout at UFC 329 in Las Vegas on Saturday. Referee Herb Dean waved it off as Garbrandt went face-down to the mat, unable to defend himself against a sustained assault from Yanez.

Both fighters arrived at the bout under pressure. Yanez had won just once in his previous five outings, most recently battling to a majority draw with Ricky Simon at UFC Seattle. Garbrandt, meanwhile, was hoping to build on a foul-marred decision win over Xiao Long and arrest a slide that has seen him lose eight of his last 13 fights.

It was Yanez who dictated the pace from the opening bell, walking Garbrandt down and denying the former champion the space to settle into his rhythm. Midway through the round, a sharp counter right hurt Garbrandt, who recovered briefly before a second counter right sent him stumbling backwards. Yanez seized the moment, shrugging off Garbrandt’s attempt to clinch and landing heavy haymakers to the head that put Garbrandt down for good.

With the victory, Yanez improves to 18-6-1 overall and 7-3-1 inside the UFC, recording his first win since a knockout of Vinicius Salvador in May 2024. For Garbrandt, now 15-8, the defeat deepens a troubling chapter in the career of a fighter who once held the UFC bantamweight title. Eight losses in 13 fights underline how far the 33-year-old has fallen from the peak that saw him dethrone Dominick Cruz back in 2016.