Headlining the card this past Saturday at UFC Des Moines was a big time matchup in the bantamweight division. Two top contenders were looking to bounce back and get themselves into the title picture as Cory Sandhagen (18-5) took on former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo (24-5-1).
Sandhagen was a big favorite on Saturday night and he showed why in this one. While Figueiredo has been really good since moving up to 135, it was hard to find an advantage for him outside of pure power. In the first round, Figueiredo struggled with the range of Sandhagen and when they went to the ground, Figueiredo sold out for a heel hook.
The problem is that the heel hook never got close and Figueiredo ate a lot of shots from Sandhagen as a result. In the second round, Sandhagen got his own takedown and again, they ended up in that heel hook position. During a scramble, Sandhagen sat up and Figueiredo fell back in pain feeling his knee pop. Figueiredo tapped while Sandhagen landed a few shots at Sandhagen got the huge win at UFC Des Moines.
What’s next after UFC Des Moines?
Cory Sandhagen has made it clear in terms of what he wants. More than anything in this world, he wants to fight for the bantamweight title. He’s now 4-1 in his last four with the lone loss being a title eliminator loss to Umar Nurmagomedov. With this win over Figueiredo, he’s right back in the title picture.
Next month at UFC 316, Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O’Malley will rematch for the title and Sandhagen plans on being there. He told me Saturday night that he doesn’t care who he fights, but admitted that a fight against O’Malley would be the biggest fight and the most exciting so he leans towards getting that matchup.
There’s only one other fighter who stands in the way of Sandhagen and that’s Petr Yan who like Sandhagen is coming off a win over Figueiredo. Yan and Sandhagen fought for the interim title back in 2021 with Yan picking up the win. Sandhagen admitted that taking that fight on short notice hurt his chances.
Yan also wants a title shot but on social media, he called for the UFC to book him in a fight with Sandhagen for July. That way they can determine a true number one contender. Honestly, this is the best possible scenario if you ask me. Whoever wins the June title fight is going to be out until the fall. Sandhagen took no damage on Saturday night so if he’s willing to get back in there in July, that would be my preference to determine a true number one contender.
That said, Sandhagen made one point that’s extremely valid regarding the title picture. Petr Yan has fought and lost to both Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O’Malley. Cory Sandhagen hasn’t fought either man so whoever wins in June, it would be a fresh matchup for the UFC. For that reason, if they don’t do Yan – Sandhagen 2, I think Sandhagen is likely going to get the next title shot.