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Cory Sandhagen calls for Merab vs. O'Malley 2 winner after UFC Des Moines victory

"Sandman" is ready for a crack at the UFC bantamweight title.
Drew Beaupre|
(Zuffa LLC)

Top bantamweight contenders Cory Sandhagen and Deiveson Figueiredo met in the headlining bout for UFC Des Moines.

Following a 3-0 start to his time as a bantamweight, two-time Flyweight Champion Figueiredo had his momentum halted when he took on former bantamweight king Petr Yan in the main event of UFC Macau last November.

Sandhagen also had a three-fight win streak halted when he met Umar Nurmagomedov in another UFC Fight Night headliner in August, but both he and Figueiredo were given a chance to jump right back into title contention with their main event bout at UFC Des Moines.

READ MORE: UFC Des Moines: Sandhagen vs. Figueiredo free live stream results & highlights

Sandhagen Dominates Figueiredo Before Injury TKO

Sandhagen entered the night as a sizeable favorite to defeat Figueiredo, although the night's co-main event did see Reinier de Ridder score a big upset when he stopped the formerly-undefeated Bo Nickal with a knee to the body in the second round.

An early takedown attempt from Figueiredo encouraged Sandhagen to force the Brazilian to the fence before the two men returned to space. "Deus da Guerra" ate a big uppercut in order to briefly secure a takedown, but after trying to jump on his opponent's back Figueiredo ended up on the mat himself.

The former flyweight champion hunted for a leg lock while Sandhagen landed punches from top position, and the opening round ended with "Sandman" landing some big shots while Figueiredo made little attempt to get back to his feet.

Sandhagen largely controlled the striking for the early part of the second round before Figueiredo was briefly able to bring things to the canvas again, but halfway through the round it was the American that landed a takedown of his own in order to start landing ground and pound again.

READ MORE: Ex-UFC champ Miesha Tate loses comeback fight at 38 years old

An awkward scramble late in the round saw "Deus da Guerra" drop to his back, and after Sandhagen quickly jumped in with a couple of punches the fight was called off when Figueiredo tapped out due to an apparent injury to his leg.

"Sandman" was quick to acknowledge during his post-fight interview that Figueiredo had suffered the injury because of the leg lock battle the two men had been engaged in, and he also called for the winner of the upcoming Merab Dvalishvili vs. Sean O'Malley rematch that headlines UFC 316 next month.

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Drew Beaupre
DREW BEAUPRE

Drew is an MMA writer that regularly watches regional events in addition to major promotions such as the UFC, PFL, Bellator, and ONE Championship. He joined MMA Knockout when it was founded in 2023.

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