"Chito really hasn't fought the competition that I've been fighting" - Cory Sandhagen surprised that Marlon Vera in discussion for title shot (Exclusive)

Cory Sandhagen is astounded that Marlon 'Chito' Vera is in the UFC bantamweight title picture.

Sandhagen named Vera and Merab Dvalishvili as his preferred next opponents after beating Song Yadong in the main event of UFC Fight Night 210.

Watch Cory Sandhagen call out Marlon 'Chito' Vera below:

Vera responded by claiming he's down to fight the 'Sandman'. But to Sandhagen's surprise, he was made aware that Vera might not be available as the Ecuadorian is on the short list of title contenders.

During an exclusive interview with James Lynch of Sportskeeda MMA, Sandhagen said:

"It seems like it but you never really know how these things happen. I don't really... I was unaware that 'Chito' was even in a conversation to be fighting for the title if things go a certain way in October. So that to me kind of like blew me away, especially because I also think 'Chito' hasn't fought the competition that I've been fighting in the last couple of years."

Catch our exclusive interview with Cory Sandhagen:

To his point, Sandhagen fought some of the best fighters in the division. Before his most recent outing, 'Sandman' faced the likes of Aljamain Sterling, Petr Yan, T.J. Dillashaw, and Marlon Moraes. However, he fell short against all the names inside the division's top three.

On the flipside, Vera is on a hot-streak with four straight wins over Davey Grant, Frankie Edgar, Rob Font, and Dominick Cruz. 'Chito' also famously handed Sean O'Malley his first-ever career defeat.

---

Cory Sandhagen explains why he deserves to fight either Marlon 'Chito' Vera or Merab Dvalishvili

Despite his high-profile losses, Cory Sandhagen still thinks he deserves to fight the best his division has to offer rather than taking on lower-ranked opponents.

After all, his loss to T.J. Dillashaw was debatably close, while his defeat to Yan came on the heels of a short training camp. With that in mind, the 30-year-old told Sportskeeda MMA:

"Not to be like the guy who feels like he's making a bunch of excuses, but the T.J. loss – super close. I took a short-notice title fight and then I just came back and fought down in the rankings. I think that the UFC should kind of hook me up with an opponent that I'm asking for, especially because I did get left out in the last matchmaking session that happened a couple of months ago."

Check out the post below:

Sandhagen's future will largely depend on the results of next month's UFC 280 pay-per-view event. Sterling will defend the 135-pound title against Dillashaw on the card, while a potential No.1 contender's bout will also take place between O'Malley and Yan.