Tag: Cory Sandhagen

Cory Sandhagen Hopes To See Dvalishvili ‘Get Served Up’ At UFC 311: ‘Merab’s Been Talking A Lot’

UFC bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen will be backing his most recent opponent when champion Merab Dvalishvili’s first title defense rolls around next month. Dvalishvili will put his 135-pound gold on the line four months on from his crowning, which came at the expense of Sean O’Malley inside the unique surroundings of the Sphere this past […]

UFC bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen will be backing his most recent opponent when champion Merab Dvalishvili’s first title defense rolls around next month.

Dvalishvili will put his 135-pound gold on the line four months on from his crowning, which came at the expense of Sean O’Malley inside the unique surroundings of the Sphere this past September.

After much discourse regarding his next opponent, and in spite of his preference not to face the challenge of Umar Nurmagomedov, the Georgian will share the cage with the undefeated Dagestani at UFC 311 in Los Angeles on Jan. 18.

If he’s to maintain his grip on the bantamweight belt and add a successful retention to his reign, “The Machine” must become the first to defeat Nurmagomedov — a feat that the highly regarded Sandhagen most recently failed to accomplish.

During a recent interview with MiddleEasy, Sandhagen assessed Dvalishvili’s chances of having his hand raised inside the Intuit Dome early next year.

“The Sandman” was honest in stating that he simply doesn’t see a single path to victory for the current champ. And beyond just his prediction, Sandhagen is actually hoping to see Dvalishvili beaten given how the Georgian’s been talking in recent weeks and months.

“I think that Umar will win. I just can’t see a path for Merab to win,” Sandhagen said. “I don’t think that he’s going to be able to strike with him, but I also don’t think he’ll be able to take him down and control him like he was able to do against O’Malley and against other guys. I don’t see a path to success for Merab.

“I think Umar is going to defend those shots, keep it in the striking realm, and just kind of — Umar’s a sniper, man. People don’t realize just how fast that guy is and how his kicks come out of nowhere,” Sandhagen continued. “Fighting a guy like Merab will be a good opportunity for him to show off a little, and just because Merab’s been talking a lot of sh*t, I kinda want to watch Merab get served up a little bit.”

After repeatedly dismissing Nurmagomedov’s title shot worthiness, Dvalishvili has cut a frustrated figure since the matchup was officially announced. He notably laid into the Dagestani during the on-sale press conference in Las Vegas earlier this month, later threatening to “slap” the challenger.

The time for talking will soon be over, with the pair set to co-headline the very first numbered event of 2025.

Cory Sandhagen Hopes To See Dvalishvili ‘Get Served Up’ At UFC 311: ‘Merab’s Been Talking A Lot’

UFC bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen will be backing his most recent opponent when champion Merab Dvalishvili’s first title defense rolls around next month. Dvalishvili will put his 135-pound gold on the line four months on from his crowning, which came at the expense of Sean O’Malley inside the unique surroundings of the Sphere this past […]

UFC bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen will be backing his most recent opponent when champion Merab Dvalishvili’s first title defense rolls around next month.

Dvalishvili will put his 135-pound gold on the line four months on from his crowning, which came at the expense of Sean O’Malley inside the unique surroundings of the Sphere this past September.

After much discourse regarding his next opponent, and in spite of his preference not to face the challenge of Umar Nurmagomedov, the Georgian will share the cage with the undefeated Dagestani at UFC 311 in Los Angeles on Jan. 18.

If he’s to maintain his grip on the bantamweight belt and add a successful retention to his reign, “The Machine” must become the first to defeat Nurmagomedov — a feat that the highly regarded Sandhagen most recently failed to accomplish.

During a recent interview with MiddleEasy, Sandhagen assessed Dvalishvili’s chances of having his hand raised inside the Intuit Dome early next year.

“The Sandman” was honest in stating that he simply doesn’t see a single path to victory for the current champ. And beyond just his prediction, Sandhagen is actually hoping to see Dvalishvili beaten given how the Georgian’s been talking in recent weeks and months.

“I think that Umar will win. I just can’t see a path for Merab to win,” Sandhagen said. “I don’t think that he’s going to be able to strike with him, but I also don’t think he’ll be able to take him down and control him like he was able to do against O’Malley and against other guys. I don’t see a path to success for Merab.

“I think Umar is going to defend those shots, keep it in the striking realm, and just kind of — Umar’s a sniper, man. People don’t realize just how fast that guy is and how his kicks come out of nowhere,” Sandhagen continued. “Fighting a guy like Merab will be a good opportunity for him to show off a little, and just because Merab’s been talking a lot of sh*t, I kinda want to watch Merab get served up a little bit.”

After repeatedly dismissing Nurmagomedov’s title shot worthiness, Dvalishvili has cut a frustrated figure since the matchup was officially announced. He notably laid into the Dagestani during the on-sale press conference in Las Vegas earlier this month, later threatening to “slap” the challenger.

The time for talking will soon be over, with the pair set to co-headline the very first numbered event of 2025.

Cory Sandhagen Suggests Petr Yan Rematch In 2025: ‘I Still Want To Get That One Back’

UFC bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen has become the latest to express interest in running it back with ex-champion Petr Yan next year. Yan continued his winning form at this past weekend’s UFC Fight Night in Macau, China, where he headlined in defense of his position on the 135-pound ladder against former two-time flyweight kingpin Deiveson […]

UFC bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen has become the latest to express interest in running it back with ex-champion Petr Yan next year.

Yan continued his winning form at this past weekend’s UFC Fight Night in Macau, China, where he headlined in defense of his position on the 135-pound ladder against former two-time flyweight kingpin Deiveson Figueiredo.

Having snapped a three-fight losing skid with a victory over Song Yadong this past March, “No Mercy” got back to a win streak at the expense of “Deus Da Guerra,” whom he defeated by way of a lopsided unanimous decision.

Among others, Yan’s display caught the eye of a familiar foe…

In a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel, Sandhagen broke down Yan’s victorious performance against Figueiredo.

During it, “The Sandman” pointed to a rematch opposite the Russian as a possible next assignment for him in 2025, having fallen short of staking his claim for a title shot when sharing the cage with Umar Nurmagomedov this past August.

Sandhagen previously lost to Yan in their interim title fight, which played out at UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi just over three years ago.

“Congrats to Yan, maybe we’ll do it next,” Sandhagen said. “I don’t really know what the division’s going on. I haven’t really heard too much. I was hoping to hear probably sometime next week about the direction that they are going to go in because I know they were waiting on this fight to play out.

“Congrats to Yan. I still want to get that one back,” Sandhagen continued. “We’ll see if it’ll be next or not.”

Yan has already responded to one of his former opponents requesting a second dance, none other than the bantamweight champ himself.

In his continued trend of calling to face top contenders not named Umar Nurmagomedov, Dvalishvili suggested his first title defense in 2025 should come against the man whom he dominantly 50-45’d on the scorecards last year.

Cory Sandhagen Believes Overestimating Umar Nurmagomedov’s Wrestling Cost Him

In his return to action in Abu Dhabi this past August, Cory Sandhagen’s three-fight winning streak came to an end. “The Sandman” has been one of the top contenders at bantamweight for a long time but in his latest outing, a new major threat emerged with his biggest win to date. The undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov […]

In his return to action in Abu Dhabi this past August, Cory Sandhagen’s three-fight winning streak came to an end. “The Sandman” has been one of the top contenders at bantamweight for a long time but in his latest outing, a new major threat emerged with his biggest win to date.

The undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov was able to skyrocket up the 135-pound rankings by decisively beating Sandhagen in the main event on August 3. The cousin of Khabib Nurmagomedov showed that he isn’t just a threat on the ground by standing and striking with his opponent for long stretches in the fight.

During a recent appearance on the JAXXON Podcast, he recapped the fight and where he believes he went wrong in his preparations. Sandhagen was able to compete with Nurmagomedov in the grappling exchanges after putting a lot of time into his wrestling throughout his training camp.

However, as a result, he encountered a problem that many fighters have when going up against a wrestling specialist. In his opinion, he became so focused on this aspect of the fight that it negatively impacted his striking which is where you’d imagine him to hold an advantage in this match-up.

He found that grappling with his opponent wasn’t the issue that he had, taking advantage of the time they spent standing was. Sandhagen was happy to learn from this fight but admitted that the narrative surrounding his opponent’s dominant grappling played a major factor inside the Octagon.

“I grappled a ton, I was wrestling a lot. Just the normal s*** man like I really thought that I would have a little bit more of a edge in the striking but should have done a little bit more striking and a little bit less wrestling because the wrestling, I kind of overestimated him big time on that. Everyone talks about how strong the Dagestani guys are and stuff and I had a little bit of that swirling around in my head so I overdid that I think a little bit.” 

Sandhagen Gives Verdict On ‘Chess Match’ Between Dvalishvili & O’Malley

The UFC 306 main event may not have been received that well by some sections of the fanbase but it did see the bantamweight title change hands. Merab Dvalishvili appeared to be in control for the vast majority of the fight against Sean O’Malley, even if the scorecards tell a different story. Though “Suga” was […]

Continue Reading Sandhagen Gives Verdict On ‘Chess Match’ Between Dvalishvili & O’Malley at MMA News.

The UFC 306 main event may not have been received that well by some sections of the fanbase but it did see the bantamweight title change hands.

Merab Dvalishvili appeared to be in control for the vast majority of the fight against Sean O’Malley, even if the scorecards tell a different story.

Though “Suga” was able to hurt his challenger in the fifth and final round, Dvalishvili’s movement, takedowns and reading of the fight were very effective.

His performance massively impressed the #4-ranked contender Cory Sandhagen who, since the fight, has called next to face O’Malley.

Cory Sandhagen Gives His Post-Fight Analysis Of UFC 306 Main Event

In a recent interview with James Lynch for Fanatics View, Sandhagen gave his thoughts on this past weekend’s bantamweight title fight.

He started by saying that his prediction for the fight had switched as the fight approached, after further consideration.

“I thought O’Malley was going to catch him until I started getting a little bit closer to the fight and I started talking to other people and getting their opinions and what they thought and blah, blah, blah. I was honestly, and not to change my mind because I’m really bad at calling fights, but I did change my mind in this one and go Merab toward the end of it.

“Once I started to reflect on how badass it is to go on a 10 or 11 fight win streak and then also never be finished or anything like that, even though he does get clipped in some of his fights, the shots that he got clipped in weren’t necessarily, like they were lead hooks, they weren’t really things that O’Malley even throws, but I thought Merab did awesome.”

One of the aspects of the fight that Sandhagen was most impressed by was Dvalishvili’s ability to close the distance and shoot for takedowns without putting himself in harm’s way.

This was always going to be where O’Malley was at his most dangerous but it didn’t end up playing into the outcome.

“I thought he fought the fight that you should fight if you have Merab’s skill set against O’Malley. I think he moved when he needed to move. The thing that I was most worried about is Merab’s just a very excitable guy and I was worried that he was gonna not be patient and he was going to bounce around and then make a mistake by going in and he was completely patient. He was cool in there, expect for the whole Tim Welch and his thing in the beginning of the fight but man, he just did such an amazing job and that’s a really, really good win because O’Malley is a really serious fighter.”

Finally, “The Sandman” said that he enjoyed watching this high-stakes clash at the Sphere despite some of the criticisms that it received from fans.

“I know that a lot of fans were bored with that one or whatever but I really do like watching chess matches and I think that that was Merab just out-chessing O’Malley and that was exciting for me to watch.”

Read also: ‘His Corner Work Was S**t’ – Former UFC Champ Goes Off On Sean O’Malley’s Coach For Merab Dvalishvili Loss

Continue Reading Sandhagen Gives Verdict On ‘Chess Match’ Between Dvalishvili & O’Malley at MMA News.

Cory Sandhagen Claims Top Five Contender Turned Him Down For December

Former interim UFC bantamweight title challenger Cory Sandhagen says a notable name toward the top of the rankings recently rejected the chance to throw down with him before the end of this year. Merab Dvalishvili now sits at the top of the bantamweight division following his win over Sean O’Malley this past weekend at UFC […]

Continue Reading Cory Sandhagen Claims Top Five Contender Turned Him Down For December at MMA News.

Former interim UFC bantamweight title challenger Cory Sandhagen says a notable name toward the top of the rankings recently rejected the chance to throw down with him before the end of this year.

Merab Dvalishvili now sits at the top of the bantamweight division following his win over Sean O’Malley this past weekend at UFC 306. With “Suga” now set to return to the contender ranks, there is sure to be several other 135-pounders wanting to face him in his next outing.

One of those names is Cory Sandhagen, who is looking to bounce back from his defeat to Umar Nurmagomedov in August.

With the Dagestani likely being the next contender in line, Sandhagen thinks that he and O’Malley makes a lot of sense, especially after he claims he was turned down by another top contender…

Cory Sandhagen Says Deiveson Figueiredo Rejected December Fight

Dvalishvili has made it pretty clear that, in his opinion, former UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo is most deserving of the next title shot. The Brazilian has won three in a row since moving up a weight class with impressive performances against Rob Font, Cody Garbrandt, and Marlon Vera.

With O’Malley potentially taking some time off, a fight between Sandhagen and “Deus Da Guerra” would make a lot of sense while Nurmagomedov challenges for the belt.

However, in his post-event breakdown of UFC 306, Sandhagen revealed on his YouTube channel that this fight has already been offered and declined on Figueiredo’s side.

“The Sandman” initially said that the fight was targeted for September but later corrected himself by saying that it was on the table for December.

With the other top names in the division being busy or inactive, he sees this as the perfect time to finally match him and O’Malley up.

“I got to say, I think that you’re absolutely insane if you don’t want to see me and O’Malley fight next, okay. I am pretty sure that maybe the entire division is going to be calling out Sean O’Malley next, just because that’s the way that people do things, but you guys know that this has been a fight that’s been in the works for a long time. I’m not going to try to sound like I’m trying to throw this idea at you guys, you guys know it’s a good idea. Back me up on all that stuff, me and O’Malley got next.

“Figgy turned down a fight against me in September, which is just kind of whack because I thought that Figgy was a little bit more about that life than that. I’m kind of actually hurt that Figgy doesn’t want to fight me in December. I don’t know what that dude’s plan is, I think Yan’s out for a little bit, Henry’s like hurt/not hurt sometimes. I don’t really know what goes on with that guy, but me and O’Malley got next.”

Continue Reading Cory Sandhagen Claims Top Five Contender Turned Him Down For December at MMA News.