Cory Sandhant could not have worked much better that he at the UFC of the monks last Saturday.
While the UFC returned to Iowa for the first time in 25 years, Sandhantn made sure to send fans to the house satisfied with its main fight against the former Champion of Mouches Mouche Deives Figueedo. Sand Applen sank on its typically versatile attack of the opening horn, dominated each position on the ground, then reversed a 50-50 goalkeeper to injure the knee of fig and win the second-round stopping with tracking shots.
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Although Sandhanten has entered the fight of a difficult unanimous decision against Umarmagomedov, his surprisingly dominant effort was exactly what he provided.
“I thought I was going to win for sure,” said Sandhant “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “I really believed in my skills to beat Fig Fig. I also allowed myself to be much more confident than ever in the past. It was one of the first things (coach) Trevor (Whittman) began to plant seeds in my head. He was not like:” Hey Cory, you must start to be more confident. “It was more like:” Hey guy, when you say things, say things with confidence “. Trevor has therefore stuck in a lot of seeds.
“Trevor is really good for transforming people into champions, as from the inside. From the front.
If one thing has taken sandpien out of the way, it was the amount of grappling that he and figure engaged. Known mainly for its striking, Sandhanten turned out to be capable on the ground, but less wise than on its feet. You may not know that, however, if the fight on Saturday had been the first time that you have been watching “The Sandman”.
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“I didn't really think there would be so much grappling,” said Sandhant. “But there was because” Figgy “was very much pulled me. He gave me inversions, so what am I going to do? Not take them? So yes, I thought I was going to dominate. I said that a lot, and I think I said I was going to finish it too.
“The whole plan was to finish it and seek better than (Petr) Yan did so that I could call my shot and that it is not Yan. This is what I did.”
Sandhantan set out to the forefront of the queue of the contenders with rooster weights, who all await the winner of the next revenge match between the champion Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O'malley at the UFC 316 on June 7.
In his post-combat interview at the UFC des Moines, Sandhant has clearly indicated that a fight for the title is his next target. So, what about serving as a rescue fighter for Dvalishvili against O'malley, as Ian Machado Garry does for the Welters weights at UFC 315 next Saturday?
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Sandhant would consider him, of course, but certainly, this is not his best scenario. Aside from him, Yan is the only person that Sandhantn sees on a path similar to a rooster weight title shot.
“After talking about some people, I think I'm just trying to be a little lasting,” said Sandhanten about his desire to be a rescue fighter. “This is what led me to the sport. Doing things that sucks that others are not willing to do. But I also think that I am in a position now that I have won (a fight for the title), and the rescue fighter is really not a good deal for the rescue fighter. You must prepare for two guys on a whim, that you could get it, and you could take the day.
“It is a very bad deal that I have the impression of having won the right not to have to do. At the same time, I will remain fairly clear in the coming weeks in case something is happening or something else.
“I will certainly be at the show,” added Sandhantn, “but I think I certainly won my shot in the title. Especially being that Umar just fought for the belt. The only other guy is Yan, and I hate being a politician and having to shoot someone else to put me a little, but he lost the two (Dvalishvili”. I finished.
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Sandhant and Yan already fought in October 2021, putting one of the best fights this year. In the end, Yan left victorious to claim the interim gold that night, and the two have had mixed results in their trips since.
A revenge match against Yan is a viable option that Sandhantn is more than ready to accept – he just wants to see how things take place in the next title Tilt First. If Dvalishvili abandons the title in O'malley, he does not expect the UFC to make a trilogy, increasing his probability of finally fighting O'malley.
“I think I definitely did everything I had to do to put myself in the best situation,” he said. “But I think that many people call this fight – I think that if O'malley wins, many (fans) will ask me and O'malley. So it will be something that I certainly expect.
“I think that when it comes back, probably after this one, logistically I am the most deserving – but also, I think that the paper, which will do better for sales and which will have more viewers, me and O'malley and me and Merab are going to do much better than the only guy of the conversation. Really see how you cannot choose me.”
