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#2. Cory Sandhagen's history with spinning kicks and flying knees
Cory Sandhagen has earned a reputation for being a stylistic finisher of late, which is another reason for him being the favorite against T.J. Dillashaw. Sandhagen's 28-second knockout of Frankie Edgar at UFC Vegas 18 became the second-fastest flying knee finish in UFC history. He is now second only to Jorge Masvidal, who is at the top of the list with his 5-second KO of Ben Askren at UFC 239.
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Cory Sandhagen is also one of only nine fighters in entire UFC history to earn a knockout from a spinning wheel kick. He accomplished the feat against Marlon Moraes in round two of their fight at UFC Fight Island 5.
'The Sandman' is also one of four fighters in UFC history to earn knockouts stemming from both a flying knee and a spinning kick. The other fighters in the organization in this exclusive list are Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos, Johnny Walker, and Edson Barboza.
Also Read: 5 things Conor McGregor has to do to win back the love of the MMA world.
#1. Cory Sandhagen has a higher striking rate than T.J. Dillashaw
Cory Sandhagen is one of the best strikers in the UFC bantamweight division. The 29-year-old lands on average 6.44 significant strikes per minute, the third-highest rate in the history of the UFC bantamweight division. In this respect, he is just behind Sean O’Malley (8.37) and Louis Smolka (7.12).
Dillashaw, on the other hand, averages 5.31 significant strikes per minute, much lower than Cory Sandhagen. Another factor that makes Sandhagen a favorite against Dillashaw is his average fight time in the UFC bantamweight division. He's taken an average of 6:47 minutes to finish off his opponents, and is the second fastest in this respect behind Smolka (5:05).
Cory Sandhagen has also picked up nine of his 14 career wins by stoppage, including five of his seven UFC wins as well.
Also Read: Dustin Poirier raises 28K for charity by auctioning his UFC 264 fight kit.
