Hector Sandoval deserves praise just for taking on Wilson Reis in his Octagon debut when called upon as replacement for Demetrious Johnson. Obviously, Sandoval was not expected to win, and he didn’t, but Sandoval showed fighting spirit!
His next time out, he faced Colombian Olympian Fredy Serrrano and came out victorious via a decision.
Sandoval is now going to face Matt Schnell (10 – 3) who at 5’8″ can still pack quite a punch. Schnell is the current interim Legacy FC Flyweight Champion. Like Sandoval, his debut too was one where he was not the favorite by any stretch of the imagination as he fought Rob Font and suffered the first knockout defeat of his career.
Schnell has won six of his eight victories via submission and two via knock out. He is a pretty balanced fighter who is good all round. Is he going to be the jack of all and master of none? or will he be able to prove his mettle when he comes face to face against Hector Sandoval?
Schell certainly has a height advantage since he is a whole 6 feet taller, but Sandoval knows Schnell’s weak point – his defending against take downs and he will certainly be looking to capitalize.
This is one more fight which is going to be very close in our opinion. If we had to choose a winner here, we will have to go with Sandoval via a unanimous decision.