Cory Sandhagen put on a tactical masterclass to overwhelm Rob Font and claim victory in the catchweight (140 lb) main event of a UFC Fight Night at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, on the morning of Sunday 6 August 2023.
To the displeasure of the booing crowd, ‘The Sandman’ neutralised all of Font’s offence and gave a wrestling clinic, ensuring that he maintained his place at the top of the bantamweight rankings against a late replacement opponent (Umar Nurmagomedov pulled out just three weeks prior).
Sandhagen, who put in just enough offence from the top position to avoid being stood up, secured a 50-45 score from all three judges. He moves to 17-4 with a third straight win since losing an interim title bout against Petr Yan in 2021.
‘The Sandman’ revealed afterwards that injuries forced him to use wrestling as his main weapon, and he is hoping to jump ahead of Merab Dvalishvili as next in line to face the winner of the UFC 292 title bout in which Aljamain Sterling faces Sean O'Malley.
“Hey Nashville, I wanted to put a more exciting fight on. I have been dealing with a lot of elbow problems recently and I think I tore my tricep in the first round," Sandhagen said. "I know, boo away, I'm sorry. It was technical as hell. I'm a wrestler now, a little bit. So, sorry. Sterling and O'Malley, I'll see you guys in Boston. I've got next. Who else would I ask for?”
The rest of the main card featured a submission win for Tatiana Suarez over Jessica Andrade in the women’s strawweight division; Dustin Jacoby made quick work of Kennedy Nzechukwu with a first-round TKO in the light heavyweight category; Diego Lopes submitted fellow featherweight Gavin Tucker; Tanner Boser outpointed Aleksa Camur in another light heavyweight match; and the lightweight opener saw L’udovit Klein defeat Ignacio Bahamondes via unanimous decision.
The UFC continues next Sunday, 13 August, with a Fight Night at the APEX Facility headlined by a welterweight clash between Vicente Luque and Rafael dos Anjos.
UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen v Font – Main card results
- Main event: Catchweight (140 lb): Cory Sandhagen def. Rob Font via unanimous decision (50-45 50-45 50-45), R5, 5:00
- Women’s strawweight: Tatiana Suarez def. Jessica Andrade via submission (guillotine choke), R2, 1:31
- Light heavyweight: Dustin Jacoby def. Kennedy Nzechukwu via TKO (punches), R1, 1:22
- Featherweight: Diego Lopes def. Gavin Tucker via submission (armbar), R1, 1:38
- Light heavyweight: Tanner Boser def. Aleksa Camur via unanimous decision (30-27 30-27 30-27), R3, 5:00
- Lightweight: L’udovit Klein def. Ignacio Bahamondes via unanimous decision (30-27 29-28 29-28), R3, 5:00