Cory Sandhagen gets honest on whether Umar Nurmagomedov getting a #1 contender fight is justified

Cory Sandhagen has opened up about whether Umar Nurmagomedov deserves to compete in their potential No.1 contender fight. Sandhagen currently holds the No. 4 position in the UFC bantamweight rankings, whereas the undefeated Nurmagomedov stands at the No. 11 spot.

Besides, UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling is booked to defend his title against the No. 2-ranked Sean O'Malley at UFC 292 on August 19, 2023. The consensus was that Sandhagen could fight the winner of the Sterling-O'Malley matchup for the title.

However, the UFC recently booked Sandhagen to fight Nurmagomedov next. In the latest edition of The MMA Hour, host Ariel Helwani alluded to the fact that many in the MMA community were surprised by 'The Sandman' being roped in to face the considerably lower-ranked Nurmagomedov.

Cory Sandhagen responded by indicating that Nurmagomedov was likely to face the No. 1-ranked Merab Dvalishvili in a #1 contender fight before that matchup fell apart. He opined that Nurmagomedov would've leapfrogged him in the rankings anyway, but he now has a chance to stop that. Sandhagen stated:

"I think that Umar is like a really great fighter. And I think that he's definitely deserving of fighting someone at the top to see if he's that good. I mean, he's 16-0. He comes from a really good camp, of course, comes from a really good part of the country with really good combat sports. And he's been doing good in the UFC."

'The Sandman' implied that the UFC rankings system isn't perfect but does add a sense of organization. Additionally, he touched upon the speculation that other bantamweights have been evading Nurmagomedov and that UFC president Dana White too has claimed the same.

When asked if he was surprised by the lower-ranked Nurmagomedov being matched up with a high-ranking fighter like him, Sandhagen said:

"I suppose so... The UFC is operating from the sense where it's like -- Well, if no one will fight him [Nurmagomedov], what do we do?"

Check out Sandhagen's comments at 7:20 and 8:10 in the video below:

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Cory Sandhagen addresses the "superhuman" aura of Dagestani fighters ahead of Umar Nurmagomedov fight

The 31-year-old Cory Sandhagen is scheduled to face 27-year-old Dagestani MMA stalwart Umar Nurmagomedov of the famed AKA fight camp. Their five-round bantamweight showdown will headline the UFC Fight Night event on August 5, 2023. It's believed that their fight's winner could receive a shot at the UFC bantamweight title.

Speaking to ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto, Cory Sandhagen recently discussed the superhuman aura that Dagestani fighters like Umar Nurmagomedov purportedly possess. 'The Sandman' highlighted that he has a smart team to help navigate that challenge. Moreover, he noted that he has multiple training partners from Nurmagomedov's part of the world to prepare him. Sandhagen stated:

"The Dagestanis kind of have this aura of being these superhuman people still and that's not true. They're just doing different things that people haven't picked up on yet."

Watch Sandhagen's assessment at 3:31 below: