He takes on Russia’s Petr Yan this Saturday.
Cory Sandhagen is under no illusion what Saturday’s bout means at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
The American will proudly call himself bantamweight champion of the world should he overcome Russia’s Petr Yan in the octagon at UFC 267.
He says: “I will see myself as champion, I know most of the public still sees Yan as champion anyway.
“I know I have some making up to do after the losses to Aljamain and TJ [Dillashaw] but I will go home with a smile on my face and call myself the champion.”
It was surprise promotion for the competitor ranked number three in the world after mandatory challenger, Aljamain Sterling, had to withdraw from the upcoming contest in the UAE’s capital with a neck injury.
The Colorado native has only endured two defeats to the aforementioned Sterling and TJ Dillashaw in his nine-fight UFC career and victory over Yan this weekend will enable him to face off once again against Sterling for revenge.
“It would be beautiful for it to work out that way. It sucks having those two ‘Ls’ on my record,” he said.
“The Sterling fight was just embarrassing for me, so I would definitely like to show I am better than that guy, and I had a night that just wasn’t good. The same with TJ – I lost a decision that was this close, and it could have gone either way.
“I definitely walked out of the cage less beat up than TJ did, so that makes it feel a bit weird but it would be beautiful if I get to avenge those two losses and be the champion.”
The 29-year-old has happy memories of Abu Dhabi where he scored a victory last time out against Marlon Moraes at UFC 179 and he is hoping all the hard time put in the gym over the last few months will pay off.
“I had a really good time in Abu Dhabi last time. I would mean a lot [becoming a world champion], I worked really hard for this.
“I didn’t do a lot of partying at college because I was at practice. I didn’t make a lot of friends in the last few years because I was at practice.
“I don’t have a lot of the same relationships that I had with old friends because of me working my ass off every single day and putting all of my energy into becoming a world champ.”
Sandhagen takes on Yan at UFC 267 at the Etihad Arena this Saturday 30 October.
Tickets are still available through Ticketmaster UAE and Etihad Arena with prices starting from AED 495.
For all your sports news in Abu Dhabi, visit Yalla – Abu Dhabi Life
