John Lineker says win over John Dodson makes him more deserving of title shot than Cody Garbrandt

PORTLAND, Ore. – There’s no confirmed No. 1 contender in the UFC bantamweight division, but it certainly looks like Cody Garbrandt is getting the next shot at champ Dominick Cruz.

But not so fast, said UFC Fight Night 96 headliner John Lineker (28-7 MMA, 9-2 UFC). The heavy-handed Brazilian thinks he should be first in line if he beats John Dodson (18-7 MMA, 7-2 UFC) at the Moda Center in Portland, Ore.

“Everybody wants that kind of opportunity,” Lineker told MMAjunkie – via his translator and manager Alex Davis – at an open workout in support of the event. “He wants it. I want it. But I think that if I convincingly beat John Dodson, I’m going to be more deserving than him.”

Lineker might have six UFC knockouts to his name, but he has some work to do if he wants to capture the spotlight from Garbrandt (10-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC), who seems to have propelled himself to the front of the line despite the fact that he’s ranked No. 7 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA bantamweight rankings.

Maybe it was Garbrandt’s backstage confrontation with Cruz (22-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) at UFC 203, or their war of words in the press, or recent tweets hinting at a future fight. But Lineker needs a highlight-reel win to get people talking.

Thankfully, Lineker said, Dodson is a good opponent for that purpose.

“Since it’s at 135, both of us are going to be stronger, so it’s going to be a better fight,” he said.

To hear more from Lineker, check out the video above.

For more on UFC Fight Night 96, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.