Cory Sandhagen and TJ Dillashaw will soon be vying for the top spot in the bantamweight rankings
Sandhagen vs Dillashaw is set to go down next month, on the 24th of July. The pair were set to face off on the 8th of May, but Dillashaw suffered a nasty gash above the eye, which led to the fight being postponed.
In a recent interview with James Lynch, Sandhagen detailed his experiences of being training partners with his now-rival, Dillashaw.
Sandhagen claimed that they were training partners for almost two years during their time at MusclePharm (called the Elevation Fight Team).
“We were training partners, you know, like, we were sparring partners. We were buddies, not the closest of friends, we didn’t hangout outside of the gym but when we were in the gym we were friendly together. I would say it was the whole MusclePharm phase which probably lasted like three years, and he was maybe a part of it for 2 of ’em…So yeah, about 2 years.”
Sandhagen is coming off a highlight-reel knockout win over Frankie Edgar at UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs Volkov. ‘The Sandman’ executed a stunning flying knee to knock the veteran out cold, just 28 seconds into the fight.
TJ Dillashaw, on the other hand, will be making a return to the Octagon for the first time in almost 18 months. His last fight was in January 2019 against Henry Cejudo. Following his loss, he was banned for 2 years since he tested positive for erythropoietin.
A win for Cory Sandhagen will cement his position as a top-ranked bantamweight
Sandhagen is currently ranked number 2 in the bantamweight rankings. A win for him will cement his claim as the ‘next-in-line’ for the bantamweight championship.
As for the championship match, Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling are set to rematch soon. The winner of Sandhagen vs Dillashaw is expected to face the winner of Yan vs Sterling.
‘The Sandman’ will be looking forward to foiling the plans of the returning Dillashaw, come the 24th of July.
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