5 reasons why Marlon Vera will beat Cory Sandhagen

Marlon Vera will face Cory Sandhagen this Saturday, March 25. It will be a highly anticipated clash between the No.3 and No.5-ranked bantamweights in the UFC. The bout is a likely title eliminator for the Venezuelan power puncher.

His opponent once faced former 135 lbs champion Petr Yan in a bid to capture an interim title. While he came up short, Sandhagen gave a good account of himself, and although the rangy American has only won one fight in his last three matchups, he remains a divisional staple and a dangerous foe for anyone.

Unfortunately, for him, 'Chito' is an even more dangerous fighter. The Venezuelan bruiser is coming off a brutal knockout win against bantamweight legend Dominick Cruz. Thus, he stands a good chance of emerging victorious this Saturday, and this list details five reasons why that's the case.

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#5. Marlon Vera's knockout power is a game-changer

High-level knockout power is a difference-maker in any bout. Part of the reason behind former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou's success as a mixed martial artist was due to the nuclear power he held in his fists. He has flattened superior strikers in the past, such as former kickboxer Alistair Overeem.

While Marlon Vera is no Francis Ngannou, he is arguably the most powerful 135'er in the world. His punching and kicking power are frightening for a bantamweight, and it led to vicious knockout wins against notoriously tough fighters like Dominick Cruz and Frankie Edgar. Due to the amount of power he has, he is an opponent everyone must be wary of.

Thus, once Cory Sandhagen steps inside the octagon to face him, the American buzzsaw must operate with caution. He could be winning most of the fight and fall victim to a KO blow over the course of five rounds.

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#4. The difference in their striking styles

Cory Sandhagen is aware of the height and reach advantage that he has over most opponents at 135 lbs. The former interim title challenger has made excellent use of his jab to impose long-range defence against his foes. He further benefits from his deep bag of feints to create openings for his jabs and kicks.

Unfortunately, due to his length, 'The Sandman' often throws kicks without setups. Furthermore, after his first-round loss to reigning bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling, he has developed more aggressive strikes with a tendency to throw risky but fight-ending blows like flying knees.

Meanwhile, Marlon Vera is an unforgiving power puncher who stalks his opponents across the octagon with ceaseless pressure and rising volume as the fight progresses. He frequently punishes his opponents with brutal kicks while waiting for openings to land knockout blows.

Due to Cory Sandhagen's penchant for jabbing, he will be easily exposed to Marlon Vera's hard low kicks. Furthermore, due to how tall he stands, he's often over-exposed to body kicks. His quick movement will be nullified by low kicks and body kicks, rendering him a more stationary target for 'Chito.'

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#3. Marlon Vera's toughness

Throughout his 28 fights, Marlon Vera has never been finished by either knockout or submission. The Venezuelan bruiser is an extraordinarily durable fighter who is rarely ever hurt in his bouts. All of his losses have come from decisions, some of which are contentious as 'Chito' believes he has won some of them.

He possesses a granite chin, such that he is able to walk through every single power shot from his foes. Against Rob Font, 'Chito' absorbed an absurd amount of punches but was never hurt or in any kind of trouble. Furthermore, he had no visible damage to speak of. This does not bode well for Cory Sandhagen.

The former interim title challenger is a dynamic striker with an eye for fight-ending shots, but his punching power is of a different variety compared to 'Chito.' He will have an exceedingly difficult time landing any damaging blows against the Venezuelan.

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#2. The bout will last five rounds

Despite Marlon Vera's ability to end a fight at a moment's notice, he isn't a hyper-aggressive fighter who fully commits himself to finish his foes the moment he stuns or drops them. Instead, he is a patient stalker who overwhelms his opponents before crushing them.

The drawback to his approach to fights is that he requires time until he finds the perfect opening for a fight-ending shot. This is something that's more difficult to do in a three-round bout. But a five-round fight is a different situation entirely. Due to Cory Sandhagen's need for space to throw kicks, he offers his foes time.

If 'Chito' is afforded time to make the necessary reads to land critical blows throughout 25 minutes, he may very well find an opening for a knockout or at least several knockdowns.

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#1. Cory Sandhagen has been in recent wars

Cory Sandhagen is a one-time interim title challenger. He faced Petr Yan in his quest for a provisional throne at 135 lbs. While he failed to defeat 'No Mercy', he didn't disgrace himself and forced the former champion to engage him in a five-round war that saw the two men take damage.

His subsequent bout came against another former titleholder. He clashed with T.J. Dillashaw in a back-to-back war that some fans believe 'The Sandman' did enough to win. Unfortunately, the nature of both bouts led to Sandhagen taking more damage than average. While he is resilient, he isn't as tough as 'Chito.'

Thus, Marlon Vera may find a foe whose chin is in a prime position to be broken. 'The Sandman' has never lost via KO, but due to the recent wars he's been a part of, it's possible that upon facing an opponent as powerful as Marlon Vera, he might crumble.