Cory Sandhagen makes his case for a title fight.
Sandhagen (17-4 MMA, 10-3 UFC) has won three straight, most recently showing off his wrestling in a dominant unanimous decision win over Rob Font in the UFC on ESPN 50 main event in August.
Sandhagen tore his triceps in his win over Font, an injury which required surgery. As he sits on the sidelines to recover, Sandhagen thinks his recent run warrants a title shot against the winner of the projected title-fight rematch between champion Sean O’Malley and Marlon Vera.
“I definitely don’t think it’s an outlandish thing for me to ask for a title shot,” Sandhagen told MMA Junkie. “If ‘Chito’ wins or O’Malley wins, what’s a better fight for me to even come back to? The most exciting fight in the division right now is me vs. O’Malley. That’s the fight that people want to see. Like, I can’t imagine a better fight, a more entertaining fight than me and O’Malley.”
With former champ Aljamain Sterling teasing a move to featherweight and top contender Merab Dvalishvili linked to a fight with Henry Cejudo, the division is starting to take shape.
Prior to beating Font, Sandhagen shut out Vera for five rounds in March. Sandhagen is aware of the criticism surrounding his win over Font – even though he was compromised, but sees himself as a worthy title contender regardless if O’Malley or Vera emerge victorious.
“If ‘Chito’ wins – which, maybe he will, maybe he won’t – I just kind of smoked him not too long ago,” Sandhagen said. “Earlier this year, (I) smoked him. So I don’t really see how it is that I could even come back to not a title fight in some regards. Obviously a lot can play out in the time that I’m out, but I’m not out for a year. I don’t think it’s an outlandish thing or a tough sell for me to ask for a title fight when I get back.”
