“That Fool Was Huffing”: Cory Sandhagen Exposes Umar Nurmagomedov’s ‘Vulnerability’ Before Abu Dhabi Fight

Cory Sandhagen is the next obstacle Umar Nurmagomedov has to overcome on his way to the Bantamweight title. Although Nurmagomedov’s incredible 17-0 record is sure to instill fear in his opponent’s heart, Cory Sandhagen believes the Dagestani’s game has a gaping hole that he plans to exploit come fight night.

Former interim title challenger Cory Sandhagen recently sat down with Demetrious Johnson for an interview on his YouTube channel. During the interview, the two men dissected the MMA landscape and also spoke about his upcoming fight. While speaking of Umar Nurmagomedov and the upcoming fight, Sandhagen explained why a five-round fight would be to his advantage, saying,

“Just from like a strategic standpoint I really do want to fight Umar in a five round fight. I don’t know if you watched his last one but he was like (Imitates huffing). He was working hard though so I will give him that. It was well within the realm of reality for him to be that tired. But that fool was really huffing and puffing during the interview. So I think there is a vulnerability there that I can capitalise on.”

Umar Nurmagomedov’s most recent fight took place against Bekzat Almakhan in March 2024 at the UFC Apex. The fight was a three-round event and Nurmagomedov secured a unanimous decision win at the end of it.

The win against Almakhan came after a break of over a year from the UFC during which the 28-year-old was recovering from injuries. The recovery process might have affected his cardio, and if not fixed in time, five rounds with Sandhagen could spell trouble for Nurmagomedov.

A closer look at Cory Sandhagen vs Umar Nurmagomedov

Nurmagomedov and Sandhagen are ranked 10th and 2nd respectively at 135 pounds in the UFC. Sandhagen is currently on a three-fight win streak with wins over the likes of Song Yadong, Marlon Vera, and Rob Font. On the other hand, Nurmagomedov is undefeated with a 17-0 record.

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‘Sandman’ will have a two-inch height and one-inch reach advantage against Nurmagomedov. In addition to this, Sanhagen is the vastly superior striker who utilizes his legs as well as he uses his hands.

Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov has a clear advantage in the wrestling department, though it will not be easy to take down Sandhagen given he has a takedown defense of 64%. Still, both men have significant areas of strengths and weaknesses over the other, making this fight too close to call.