Cory Sandhagen reasserted himself as a bantamweight contender on Saturday when he defeated Marlon Vera in the UFC on ESPN 43 main event.
Sandhagen (16-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC) now has back-to-back wins after his last failed title shot after securing a unanimous decision win over Vera (20-8-1 MMA, 14-7 UFC) in the headlining bout a AT&T Center in San Antonio.
Check below for the top Twitter reactions to Sandhagen’s victory over Vera at UFC on ESPN 43.
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MMA Junkie
A 🔑 bantamweight bout is moments away: Marlon Vera and Cory Sandhagen fight in a top-tier contender clash next at #UFCSanAntonio.
Full story: https://t.co/GvTT7F7uhj pic.twitter.com/U2fInsR5gf
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) March 26, 2023
Nick Kalikas
#UFCFightNight Main Event Closing Betting Odds via @CircaSports
Marlon Vera +135
Cory Sandhagen -155#UFCSanAntonio 💰 | @UFC | @ESPN— Nick Kalikas (@FightOdds) March 26, 2023
UFC
Ready to step into the Octagon of fire! 🔥
Here comes @CorySandhagen! #UFCSanAntonio pic.twitter.com/vbncqQe6oB
— UFC_AUSNZ (@UFC_AUSNZ) March 26, 2023
UFC
📺 Front row seats to the Chito show 📺@ChitoVeraUFC | #UFCSanAntonio pic.twitter.com/UsEkxCqlQ7
— UFC (@ufc) March 26, 2023
UFC
LFG ANOTHER BANGERWEIGHT CLASSIC #UFCSanAntonio pic.twitter.com/cpsUHhXhsw
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) March 26, 2023
MMA Junkie
Some pretty important bantamweights are keeping a close eye on the #UFCSanAntonio main event. 👀
Play-by-play: https://t.co/GvTT7F7uhj pic.twitter.com/giZSMPkDNP
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) March 26, 2023
Cageside Press
R1 – Chito vs. Cory – Cory with the pressure early, but not a lot.
Chito waiting. Goes leg kick. Jab Chito, Cory with the jabs.
Cory leg kick. Cory left hand to the body. Chito left hand. Leg kick.
Cory leg kick #UFCSanAntonio
— Cageside Press (@Cagesidepress) March 26, 2023
Sodiq Yusuff
Win or lose watching cory sandhagen is art
— Sodiq Yusuff (@Super_Sodiq) March 26, 2023
Michael Chandler
Chito v Cory is too close to call…both are show stoppers. #UFCSanAntonio
— Michael Chandler (@MikeChandlerMMA) March 26, 2023
Caposa
What a start for Sandhagen
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) March 26, 2023
Bloody Elbow
Vera in full guard. Now getting squished into the cage. #UFCSanAntonio
— Bloody Elbow (@BloodyElbow) March 26, 2023
Raphael Assuncao
Batamweight fight right here !!!!#UFCFightNight
— Raphael Assuncao (@RaphaAssuncao) March 26, 2023
Aaron Bronsteter
10-9 Sandhagen after R1
— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) March 26, 2023
UFC
"I don't want to be 2-0 down."
🔊 Let's go into the Chito Vera corner after a big opening round from Sandhagen. #UFCSanAntonio pic.twitter.com/a47p2V6Li8
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) March 26, 2023
Chris Curtis
Most Chito Vera start to a fight I have ever seen.
10-9 Sandhagen#UFCSanAntonio— Chris Curtis The Action Man (@Actionman513) March 26, 2023
Nick Kalikas
#UFCFightNight LIVE In-Game Wagering Odds After RD-1 via @CircaSports
Marlon Vera +235
Cory Sandhagen -305#UFCSanAntonio 💰 | @UFC | @ESPN— Nick Kalikas (@FightOdds) March 26, 2023
Terrance McKinney
Sandhagen is so precise and lethal #UFCSanAntonio
— Terrance McKinney (@twrecks155) March 26, 2023
Belal Muhammad
Man Cory’s angles are so good
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) March 26, 2023
Kevin Iole
Cory mixing it up well. Had a combination and took Chito down. Vera grabs a guillotine
— Kevin Iole (@KevinI) March 26, 2023
Cory slips out
— Kevin Iole (@KevinI) March 26, 2023
Mike Jackson
Cory Sandhagen is doing a thing here. #UFCSanAntonio
— Mike Jackson, Esq. (@TheTruthJackson) March 26, 2023
Aljamain Sterling
A lot of questions being answered tonight!! This division is STACKED!!! Sandhagen is a BAAAD dude! Chito is never out of the fight tho! #UFCSanAntonio
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) March 26, 2023
UFC
Nervioso en primera fila el excampeón @LukeRockhold por su amigo Chito #UFCSanAntonio pic.twitter.com/zRT9Y3bdAn
— UFC Español (@UFCEspanol) March 26, 2023
Belal Muhammad
Chito is ok with losing 2 rounds because his power carries late I think he’ll pick it up in the 3rd but Cory looks great
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) March 26, 2023
Brian Martin
Marlon Vera finds himself in a 2-0 hole. Great pressure from Sandhagen. #UFCSanAntonio
— Brian Martin (@TheBMartin) March 26, 2023
Nolan King
“You’re starting to bum me out a bit. Don’t do that.” – Jason Parillo to Chito Vera after Round 2.
It’s 20-18 Sandhagen.#UFCSanAntonio
— Nolan King (@mma_kings) March 26, 2023
Nick Kalikas
#UFCFightNight LIVE In-Game Wagering Odds After RD-2 via @CircaSports
Marlon Vera +385
Cory Sandhagen -555#UFCSanAntonio 💰 | @UFC | @ESPN— Nick Kalikas (@FightOdds) March 26, 2023
Cageside Press
R3 – Chito has to go to work and Cory needs to keep it going.
Front kicks for Cory. Chito leg kick. Chito high kick blocked, Cory left hand then the leg kick.
Cory showed up tonight!
Chito finally firing away. #UFCSanAntonio
— Cageside Press (@Cagesidepress) March 26, 2023
Simon Head
Cory Sandhagen is fighting superbly here. Chito Vera needs to find another gear to knock Cory out of his rhythm, or he'll be looking at a lop-sided decision defeat. #UFCSanAntonio
— Simon Head (@simonhead) March 26, 2023
Jose Youngs
Cory Sandhagen is very good at fist fighting #UFCSanAntonio
— José Youngs (@JoseYoungs) March 26, 2023
Jamie Mullarkey
Sandhagen sooo technical
— Jamie Mullarkey (@jamie_mullarkey) March 26, 2023
Belal Muhammad
I hope we see Cory vs O’Malley at some point that striking will be fun
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) March 26, 2023
Chris Curtis
Chito is playing a dangerous game right now. Razors edge.#UFCSanAntonio
— Chris Curtis The Action Man (@Actionman513) March 26, 2023
Matthew Wells
Much better round for Chito, but Sandhagen still landed cleaner. 30-27. #UFCSanAntonio
— Matthew Wells (@MrMWells) March 26, 2023
Caposa
It was a good start for Chito, definitely his best round… but I still think I'm going Cory who took over in the final half of the round. 30-27
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) March 26, 2023
Nick Kalikas
#UFCFightNight LIVE In-Game Wagering Odds After RD-3 via @CircaSports
Marlon Vera +250
Cory Sandhagen -330#UFCSanAntonio 💰 | @UFC | @ESPN— Nick Kalikas (@FightOdds) March 26, 2023
Lando Vannata
Commentators. Chill on the dick riding 😒
— Lando Vannata (@GroovyLando) March 26, 2023
Islam Makhachev
🥩 for @UNmgdv
— Makhachev Islam (@MAKHACHEVMMA) March 26, 2023
Aljamain Sterling
Round score so far? #UFCSanAntonio
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) March 26, 2023
Jed Meshew II
This is extremely high level MMA, but I’ll admit I’m disappointed. It’s not nearly as exciting as I was expecting/hoping for. #UFCSanAntonio
— Jed Meshew II (@JedKMeshew) March 26, 2023
Jeremy Stephens
Pretty sure I just saw a judge texting during the fight 🤣
— Jeremy Stephens (@LiLHeathenMMA) March 26, 2023
Hyon Ko
Sandhagen has clearly taken all four rounds. Looking excellent in all areas. But a cornered, desperate Chito Vera is the most dangerous version. Don't count him out. #UFCSanAntonio
— Hyon Ko (@JHKMMA) March 26, 2023
Matthew Wells
Shutout from Sandhagen through four. He's making things very difficult on Vera with his quick movements. #UFCSanAntonio
— Matthew Wells (@MrMWells) March 26, 2023
Nick Kalikas
#UFCFightNight LIVE In-Game Wagering Odds After RD-4 via @CircaSports
Marlon Vera +850
Cory Sandhagen -1500#UFCSanAntonio 💰 | @UFC | @ESPN— Nick Kalikas (@FightOdds) March 26, 2023
Brett Okamoto
Even with all of the "anything can happen in MMA" and "Chito is always dangerous" rhetoric, if Chito were to pull this off in the final five minutes it would be nothing short of amazing. Sandhagen has been brilliant tonight.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) March 26, 2023
Eric Nicksick
Great corner work by Banks, that was absolutely spot on! #UFCSanAntonio
— Eric Nicksick (@Eric_XCMMA) March 26, 2023
Conor McGregor
Mike Brown
Sandhagen with a beautiful Round 4… controlling the angles
— Mike Thomas Brown (@mikebrownmma) March 26, 2023
Michael Chandler
Cory in control. Chito is so dang good – but we aren’t seeing it tonight.
— Michael Chandler (@MikeChandlerMMA) March 26, 2023
Teddy Atlas
Man Sandhagen is like an Octopus, he comes at you 8 different ways. So difficult. #UFCSanAntonio
— Teddy Atlas (@TeddyAtlasReal) March 26, 2023
Sodiq Yusuff
Versatile Intellect Battle Evaluation System #UFCSanAntonio
— Sodiq Yusuff (@Super_Sodiq) March 26, 2023
Farah Hannoun
A solid and well-rounded performance by Cory Sandhagen. Never let Chito build rhythm. #UFCSanAntonio
— Farah Hannoun (@Farah_Hannoun) March 26, 2023
UFC
Twenty-five minutes are in the books! Who's winning in your scorecards? 📋 #UFCSanAntonio pic.twitter.com/Y12OdmypvU
— UFC_Asia (@UFC_Asia) March 26, 2023
Daniel Cormier
Great job tonight by @corysandhagen I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him look this good. From start to finish and the adjustments to mix in the wrestling best performance he’s had over great fighter in Chito #UFCSanAntonio
— Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) March 26, 2023
MMA Junkie
#UFCSanAntonio results: Cory Sandhagen (@CorySandhagen) def. Marlon Vera via split decision (47-48, 50-45, 49-46)
Full story: https://t.co/GvTT7F7uhj pic.twitter.com/3dUbtJT169
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) March 26, 2023
Matt Brown
The judge that gave that to Vera should be fired by morning
— Matt Brown (@IamTheImmortal) March 26, 2023
MMA Junkie
Cory Sandhagen walking out of the octagon victorious. ☝️ #UFCSanAntonio
Play-by-play: https://t.co/GvTT7F7uhj pic.twitter.com/jyZT4floPR
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) March 26, 2023
Kamaru Usman
48-47 Vera??? I love Chito as well but damn what was that judge watching smh 🤦🏿♂️ #UFCSanAntonio
— KAMARU USMAN (@USMAN84kg) March 26, 2023
Islam Makhachev
I want to see the judge who gave chito 🤷♂️🤷♂️🤷♂️
— Makhachev Islam (@MAKHACHEVMMA) March 26, 2023
UFC
"I got a line…it's a little embarrassing!" 😅
⏳ @CorySandhagen with the humble self-aware callout for Merab Dvalishvili! #UFCSanAntonio pic.twitter.com/f2b8QEyiY9
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) March 26, 2023
