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Cory Sandhagen (17-5) is a peculiar fighter, different from what fans are used to seeing. The American has been at the top of the UFC's bantamweight rankings for years, but always falls short of earning a title shot. Despite not being very media-friendly, Sandhagen never disappoints in his fights, and this weekend he will face Deiveson Figueiredo (24-4-1) to see who prevails in the fight to be the number one contender.
Cory was on a three-fight winning streak until he faced Umar Nurmagomedov in August last year, losing by unanimous decision and missing out on a golden opportunity to face Merab Dvalishvili for the title. In fact, Sandhagen already faced Petr Yan in 2021 with the interim belt at stake, but also lost to the Russian by unanimous decision.
I've never thought I had the skills to be a champion as much as I do now
At 33 years of age, he now feels he is ready to be champion. "I feel better than ever. I've never thought I had the skills to be champion as much as I do now. I'm ready to put on the best performance of my life this Saturday, win impressively and ask for a shot at the belt," he said at Wednesday's media day.
A strange personality
Despite not being a marketing genius, Sandhagen has gained some media clout in recent weeks. The American uploaded a funny video to his YouTube channel a few days ago where he hired a man to help him have better trashtalk and thus become a bigger superstar. Obviously, the whole video was ironic.
What is not ironic is the strange ritual that Sandhagen carries out days before his fights, which is based on eating hallucinogenic mushrooms to get to know himself better and improve his skills for the fight. "I ingest a high amount of mushrooms two weeks before the fight. I like to explore my subconscious and open my mind, and it works for me," he acknowledged a few days ago. This Saturday his intention is to strike a blow and finally achieve a dream that he has been waiting for seven years.