Cory Sandhagen and Umar Nurmagomedov faced off in a bantamweight tilt in the UFC Abu Dhabi main event on Saturday, with a title shot all but promised to the winner.
While such things are never a certainty, with Sean O’Malley facing Merab Dvalishvili fighting next month, the winner would be poised to strike if everything went according to plan.
Sandhagen started the fight by taking the centre of the cage, until Nurmagomedov grabbed onto a single leg and briefly took his back. Sandhagen stayed calm and got away, then continued to pressure Nurmagomedov, while showing off stellar takedown defense. It was apparent early how comfortable and composed Sandhagen looked, and how nervy and twitchy Nurmagomedov looked. Nurmagomedov took Sandhagen down late in round one, but nothing came of it.
Sandhagen was showing off impressive defensive grappling, defending a back take early in round two, and then cracking Nurmagomedov with a big right hand. The pair of bantamweights were trading kicks, mostly to the legs and body. Nurmagomedov was able to take Sandhagen’s back once again, but clearly the rounds with Ryan Hall were paying off, as Sandhagen stayed calm, and scrambled back to his feet.
The third round started very tense, both fighters having success with strikes, but not much action for the first three minutes. Sandhagen was beginning to open up with kicks, however Nurmagomedov was having the better round overall. At the end of the round, Nurmagomedov took Sandhagen down, and once again took his back, but didn’t attempt any submissions in the short time he had control.
It was a very close fight through three rounds.
This fight was very technical, with both fighters finding success in the striking realm, but not many big, damaging strikes had landed through three and a half rounds. A great level change from Nurmagomedov led to yet another back take in round four. Nurmagomedov was landing more, maybe even better strikes, and showing effective grappling, despite Sandhagen making it difficult. Scorecards going into the fifth round were all over the place on social media.
Nurmagomedov went from looking nervous in the first round, to the more confident looking fighter in round five. Nurmagomedov was able take Sandhagen down, and for the first time in this fight, gain a bit of control time. Nurmagomedov took over the fight, showcasing that he is a truly elite bantamweight. A win over Sandhagen will skyrocket him from the #10 ranked Bantamweight, to the #2 ranked Bantamweight, and in line for the next title shot, after Dvallishvili takes on O’Malley next month.
Also of note, Umar Nurmagomedov improved to 18-0 with the victory on Saturday.
Official Result: Umar Nurmagomedov def. Cory Sandhagen by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 49-46, 49-46)
