UFC fighter Cody "No Love" Garbrandt "may be posturing" to fill the "glaring superstar vacancy" that the promotion would face if Conor McGregor were to lose another fight, according to Phil Murphy of ESPN.com. Team Alpha Male coach Justin Buchholz said of Garbrandt, "The guy has (Justin) Bieber appeal. When he fought (Augusto) 'Tanquinho' Mendes in Pittsburgh, there was a girl who was 15 years old. She (skipped) a Justin Bieber meet-and-greet to go to Cody's weigh-in." Murphy noted Garbrandt's fight against Takeya Mizugaki "headlines Saturday's preliminary card" at UFC 202, which "could rival UFC 196" as the organization's best-selling PPV of '16. Garbrandt-Mizugaki is the "last free fight" before the coverage turns to PPV. The time slot will make his bout "among the most watched of the night, particularly among casual fans who don't end up buying the main card." Garbrandt's "soap opera good looks, comfort on the mic and dynamite in his hands all check boxes in MMA promotion," and a "top-shelf tattoo game doesn't hurt either" (ESPN.com, 8/15).
