LAS VEGAS – Cory Sandhagen hasn't thought much about what happened when he first fought Mario Bautista.
On the main card of UFC 329 at T-Mobile Arena (Paramount+), Sandhagen (18-6 MMA, 11-5 UFC) rematches Bautista (17-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC). It's not a fight that Sandhagen necessarily wanted, but once he saw how the other top names in the division were being matched up, he had a feeling this would be his next ***** ignment.
The two first fought at UFC Fight Night 143 in January 2019. The fight lasted only 3:31, thanks to a Sandhagen armbar. It's a fight that Sandhagen hasn't thought much about since, but he's aware Bautista may have harped on that result ever since.
"Outside of Mario, I know, having a chip on his shoulder and probably really wanting this one, which has been something in my mind the entire time that I've been training, it doesn't really feel like a rematch," Sandhagen told reporters at pre-fight media day. "My memory is about a month long, so anything that happened more than like a month ago, might as well have been lifetimes ago. So yeah, and I also didn't lose.
"So, he definitely has a chip on his shoulder. He probably thought about that fight way more than I did in this one, which, you know, could benefit him, but also could not."
On the main card of UFC 329 at T-Mobile Arena (Paramount+), Sandhagen (18-6 MMA, 11-5 UFC) rematches Bautista (17-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC). It's not a fight that Sandhagen necessarily wanted, but once he saw how the other top names in the division were being matched up, he had a feeling this would be his next ***** ignment.
The two first fought at UFC Fight Night 143 in January 2019. The fight lasted only 3:31, thanks to a Sandhagen armbar. It's a fight that Sandhagen hasn't thought much about since, but he's aware Bautista may have harped on that result ever since.
"Outside of Mario, I know, having a chip on his shoulder and probably really wanting this one, which has been something in my mind the entire time that I've been training, it doesn't really feel like a rematch," Sandhagen told reporters at pre-fight media day. "My memory is about a month long, so anything that happened more than like a month ago, might as well have been lifetimes ago. So yeah, and I also didn't lose.
"So, he definitely has a chip on his shoulder. He probably thought about that fight way more than I did in this one, which, you know, could benefit him, but also could not."
4 months ago
