Cory Sandhagen reiterates Sean O'Malley callout while making his case against fighters' stardom influencing matchmaking: "Just show up and fight"

Cory Sandhagen has called out former bantamweight king Sean O'Malley. Sandhagen has now reiterated the callout while arguing that fighters' stardom shouldn't influence UFC matchmaking like it currently does.

'The Sandman' has an MMA record of 17-5 and wins over Marlon Vera, Frankie Edgar, and Song Yadong, among others. The Colorado native lost his most recent bout against Umar Nurmagomedov in 2024 and has not fought since then.

Meanwhile, O'Malley, who was dethroned by Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306, has also not fought since. With rumors circulating that a rematch between 'The Machine' and 'Sugar' could be next, Sandhagen thinks the rematch shouldn't happen as Dvalishvili dominated that first fight.

Sandhagen said in a recent Instagram video:

"Let’s be real, O’Malley has no business fighting Merab for an immediate rematch. He got beat up in the first fight. He’s going to get beat up in the second fight. No one wants to see that fight. I'm not booked yet."

He added:

"I want to fight. I am so damn bored. I’ll even give this fool as much time as he wants the way that Aljamain [Sterling] gave him as much time as he wants. Just UFC, make the fight that the fans want to see, which is me and O’Malley. Make it happen soon. I’m so f*cking bored.”

Check out Cory Sandhagen's call-out below:

In a recent interview with MMAonSiriusXM, 'The Sandman' suggested that he and O'Malley should fight despite their differences and that just because he is not as well-known as the former champion, fighting Sandhagen will not harm 'Sugar's' legacy and reputation.

The 32-year-old bantamweight urged O'Malley to "just show up and fight." He said:

"Sean has no merit to say that he shouldn't fight me other than, 'Hey, I have a million followers and you don't.' Just show up and fight."

Check out Cory Sandhagen's comments below:

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Cory Sandhagen breaks down a potential matchup with Sean O'Malley

Cory Sandhagen and Sean O'Malley are both excellent strikers with strong attacking prowess. Sandhagen, however, believes he possesses superior skills and can do whatever he wants to O'Malley inside the octagon.

Appearing on the JAXXON Podcast in 2024, 'The Sandman' slammed O'Malley's ground game, saying:

"I really think that I would do what I want to O'Malley. He's a really clunky grappler, you can tell he does a lot more stuff with his jiu-jitsu coach than he does with the wrestling coach. That's not the way to go about modern MMA."

Check out Cory Sandhagen's comments below (47:08):