Cory Sandhagen criticizes Sean O'Malley's resume, hopes to prove he's better
UFC bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen believes there are plenty of good fights available at the top of the division, but hopes to mix it up with Sean O'Malley to prove who is better.
Sandhagen (18-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC) wants to fight for the 135-pound title, first and foremost. He may get the chance to kill two birds with one stone should O'Malley (18-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) defeat current champion Merab Dvalishvili in their upcoming title rematch at UFC 316 on June 7 in Newark, N.J.
"I think I'm sitting in a good spot, I just gotta persuade 'em, you know?" Sandhagen said on "Overdogs Podcast." "I did my best in my last fight."
Sandhagen returned to the win column earlier this month with a second-round TKO stoppage of former flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo. The 33-year-old believes his strength of schedule is solid enough to warrant a title shot next. While Sandhagen admits Petr Yan, whom he fought for an interim title at UFC 267, also has a strong resume, he can't say the same about O'Malley, who landed an immediate rematch after losing to Dvalishvili at UFC 306.
"When you think about O'Malley, he's had a good run at stuff, but I think if you fight tough guys for long enough, there's going to be nights where you just don't win, you know what I mean?" Sandhagen said. "Because all of these guys are really good, and I've fought the best guys for a really long time. Not a lot of other people in the division really get to say that except for maybe Yan and Merab.
"O'Malley's not really one of those guys that gets to say that he's fought all of the best of the best of the division. I think that when he does that, he's gonna have off nights and he's gonna lose. I sometimes have off nights, and I've lost. That's just how fighting works."
Should O'Malley walk away with the title at UFC 316, Sandhagen hopes it leads to a title shot because it's one of the fights fans have wanted to see for some time. Both offer unique striking styles, which makes for an intriguing matchup, and he'll get the opportunity to put online arguments about who's better to rest.
"I think that when me and O'Malley fight, I'll get to show that I'm a lot better than him," Sandhagen said. "Unless I get that opportunity, I don't really feel like arguing with the ether of the internet about who's better at what. I think I'll definitely get that opportunity to show that one of these days."
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