News Cory Sandhagen vs Umar Nurmagomedov set to headline UFC Abu Dhabi on August 3

[RonDante]

There is no hype for Sandhagen, plus his last fight was boring wasn’t so exciting.

you have to look at the champion at Bantmaneeight at the moment, they aren’t going to match O’Malley with a someone who just had a boring forgettable bout, that is why Vera got the shot before Sandhagen plus given Vera & O’Malleys history it was a easy bout to book.

If Sandhagen wants a shot at the title he needs to not be boring and try something for people yo want him to get a shot.

Holloway, at UFC 300 with a great performance just surpassed everyone aside from Arman at LW. Just one GREAT MEMORABLE PERFOMANCE

The UFC is all performances based, it’s obvious.

Fighters like Sandhagen are doing themselves a disservice by just winning without leaving something memorable or a great performance. He needs to leave a stamp against Umar that leaves no one to doubt he’s next after Merab.

I’m not going to fighter bash, but most fighters nowadays are just being *, They believe just winning will get them the recognition, Sandhagen needs to do something to stand out from the other cookie cutter fighters. Otherwise Jose Aldo will probably get a shot before him at this poi)t

Vera got the title shot because merab was already booked for a fight and sandhagen was injured. It has nothing to do with his rob font performance being boring

 

[moosaev]

Cory will spank him

i'm bookmarking this lol

 

[RonDante]

What was Sean O'malley ranked when he got the shot at Petr Yan?

It was like 14th, which is justifiable without a ranked win. 9th isn’t. And o malley didn’t deserve a number one contender fight with yan either

 

[moosaev]

It was like 14th, which is justifiable without a ranked win. 9th isn’t. And o malley didn’t deserve a number one contender fight with yan either

My point is that many lower ranked fighters get big step up fights (BSD, Erceg, O'Malley, and the list goes on). There's a specific group on sherdog that only bitches about this when the Dagis are awarded big step up fights.

 

[Question]

Vera got the title shot because merab was already booked for a fight and sandhagen was injured. It has nothing to do with his rob font performance being boring

I believe the Merab/Henry was announced after actually, Sean/Chito was confirmed in November and Merab/Henry was confirmed in December
And yea Sandhagen was injured and not recovering anytime soon at that point so they had to get somebody to fight O'Malley

Merab was available, they did pretty much skip over him BUT he sort of unintentionally gave them an excuse to do it when he was pushing hard for them to give Aljo to get a rematch before they offer it the shot to him. So yea, again Merab shot himself in the foot lol
At least now he's getting his shot tho, should be an interesting high level bout

 

[LoveMyMMA]

Umar fights non-ranked opponent - "What a wuss! Why won't he fight a ranked opponent? Someone needs to fraud check this loser!"

Umar fights ranked opponent - "Unbelievable! Dagestani privilege at its finest! He doesn't deserve to fight a top opponent!"


LMAO.

 

[moosaev]

Sandhagen has been training mustache to capitalize on the Dagestani's weakness in that area.

The dude that knocked Umar down has crushing power, he was knocking dudes out cold in his old promotion. If anything that showed that Umar has a good chin.

 

[moosaev]

Umar fights non-ranked opponent - "What a wuss! Why won't he fight a ranked opponent? Someone needs to fraud check this loser!"

Umar fights ranked opponent - "Unbelievable! Dagestani privilege at its finest! He doesn't deserve to fight a top opponent!"


LMAO.

It's the usual 3 card monty they play with the Dagi fighters.

"Islam hasn't defended against a top 5 LW"........"Why is Islam fighting Dustin (ranked #4)?!!!"

LOL

 

[kingmob6]

Can't believe so many worry about rankings. Give me the best fucking fights, don't give a shit about rankings. Umar is better than #9 or 10 ranking that he has anyways.
Many think it will be a wrestling affair, but I think they will have good portions of the fight where they trade. I'm still not 100% sure what Umar's striking looks like under pressure; Cory is an advanced striker, so will be very interesting to see them stand and trade, and see how Umar handles himself.
This is a great fight, only losers complain about rankings.

 

[Leonard Haid]

Perfect headline card in a Muslim country. Excellent business acumen, UFC. Great match-up as well. May the best fighter win, and not by the loser getting screwed by the judges.

 

[NicholasJBasile]

I'm thinking Umar can do to Cory what TJ did but in more dominant fashion. The lack of 5 round experience may be a factor though.

 

[NicholasJBasile]

Can't believe so many worry about rankings. Give me the best fucking fights, don't give a shit about rankings. Umar is better than #9 or 10 ranking that he has anyways.
Many think it will be a wrestling affair, but I think they will have good portions of the fight where they trade. I'm still not 100% sure what Umar's striking looks like under pressure; Cory is an advanced striker, so will be very interesting to see them stand and trade, and see how Umar handles himself.
This is a great fight, only losers complain about rankings.

Agreed, and even if it was a wrestling affair, I wouldn't view that as a bad thing. This isn't kickboxing or bare knuckle. I'm hyped for the fight and glad the match up was made.

 

[jx820]

The dude that knocked Umar down has crushing power, he was knocking dudes out cold in his old promotion. If anything that showed that Umar has a good chin.

I don't understand how that relates to what I said.

 

[Khaosan]

Sandhagen via flying knee.

 

[Dorkman]

Hope Corey pulls it off. I really want to see O'malley vs Sandhagen

 

[AmonTobin]

I hope this is 5 rounds. I’ll admit I love Cory’s fights and hate Umar’s. I hope Sandhagen KO’s him back out of the top 10.

 

[Whitestallion]

Perfect Cory ends this bum

 

[RonDante]

My point is that many lower ranked fighters get big step up fights (BSD, Erceg, O'Malley, and the list goes on). There's a specific group on sherdog that only bitches about this when the Dagis are awarded big step up fights.

Tons of people were calling erceg getting a title shot a joke. But even erceg had two ranked wins, umar has 0. Tons of people were calling o malleys title eliminator a joke, and when he got gifted a decision? People went nuts.

BSD, again, had a ranked win and wasn’t guaranteed a title shot if he beat Dustin, who was coming off a loss. The fact Dustin was coming off a loss meant he had to fight down also. Cory is right there for a title shot if he just waits

So this “no one cared when they got a bump up” is just a lie

 

[Johnnny]

Sherdog: Umar hasn’t fought anyone

Vegas: we’re making Umar a -300 favorite vs Sandhagen

The fight is in Abu Dhabi, which means Sandhagen will have to cut down to 136 lbs but Nurmagomedov can step on the scale weighing whatever he wants and they will still announce his weight as 136.

Outweighing your opponent by 10-15 lbs is a very significant advantage, especially in wrestling. It is one the key principles of Abdulmanap's system.

The constitution of the UAE explicitly states that Islam is the official religion. So there is a societal preference (especially among those in power) for fighters of said religion, which can affect judging in Abu Dhabi.

 

[dmwalking]

I like it. Not a fan of guys shitting on fighters who fight outside of the UFC. Strikeforce guys came into the UFC and did really well. Some Bellator boys have come to the UFC and done well. Became champs! Star power is pretty irrelevant in the fight game outside of ticket/PPV sales. What matters is ability. "Umar hasn't beaten anyone." OK, but have you actually WATCHED him FIGHT? He can fight. He's good.

I think Umar is very skilled. I like the idea of testing him against a legit fighter. I think it looks good for Corey too. A win over a hyped prospect is a good win. But honestly, if Umar can pull it off, it's not because Corey is shit (like Sherdoggers would automatically assume), it's because Umar is legit.

In my opinion, unless it's a crotch sniffing fight, I expect this one to be exciting. Corey has good counter grappling and solid striking. Umar actually has some pretty slick striking and great grappling. I expect a fun fight. And win or lose, I feel like neither guy's stock will drop.

This is a good match making in my opinion. Relevant to the ranking. Potentially exciting for the fans. Add in the Nurmogomedov name for a little razzle dazzle.