After the toughest stretch of his professional career, Cory Sandhagen is just one win away from his first UFC title run.
In a fight to determine the interim bantamweight champion, Sandhagen (14-3) enters the Octagon on Saturday at UFC 267 against Petr Yan. Despite splitting his last four fights and coming off a loss to TJ Dillashaw three months ago, only Yan (15-2) stands between Sandhagen and the title.
But it will not be an easy task. Yan looked poised to defeat Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259 in March, but was disqualified late in the fourth round after he hit Sterling with an intentional illegal knee strike. Initially, UFC 267 was intended to host a rematch between Sterling and Yan, but Sterling withdrew due to a neck injury. That opened the door for Sandhagen to get a shot at the belt, an opportunity he doesn’t take lightly.
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“That their fight ended the way it ended, it was a shame,” says Sandhagen. “I thought it was foolish on Yan’s part, and it’s a shame Sterling is getting a backlash after taking a blatant shot.
“Now is my chance. As long as I go in there for 25 minutes and work hard, stay focused, and stay in the world I fight best in, I think I’ll get out of there with the gold. If I do those three things, I will be champion. “
Sandhagen has lost just three times in his career, two of which were by decision. Sterling gave Sandhagen a different kind of defeat, needing just 88 seconds to subdue him. If he wins the belt, Sandhagen plans to seek redemption against Sterling and Dillashaw.
“I’m very excited to have the opportunity to win this fight and then have rematches with Sterling and Dillashaw,” says Sandhagen. “Those are my only two losses in the UFC. I got into this to show that I am the best, but I did a poor job in the Sterling fight. He could also have done a few things to show the judges that he was winning against Dillashaw. It would be a beautiful story if I could get those rematches after beating Yan. “
Dillashaw had the wrestling advantage in his last fight, but that could serve as strength against Yan on Saturday.
“Wrestling allows you to control the space, which is why it is very important,” says Sandhagen. “I know people think of me as a striker, but I love wrestling. It feels good to have that advantage. “
Months after a devastating loss, Sandhagen has a unique opportunity, one that, if victorious, will change his career.
“The hardest path leads to lessons, which are not learned when you take an easy route,” says Sandhagen. “I am very clear that it does not improve when things are easy. You improve when you overcome the things that are more difficult. My wrestling coach, Carrington Banks, who is also my teammate, always teases me for enjoying the suffering.
“I enjoy suffering. That is my path to success. I just enjoy suffering. I’m more interested in the endgame than in the present, and that’s going to pay off in this fight. “
Justin Barrasso can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @Justinbarrasso.
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Eddie is an Australian news reporter with over 9 years in the industry and has published on Forbes and tech crunch.