Corey Sandhagen vs T. J. Dillashaw fight Forecast

Over the past few years, the UFC lightweight has been shaken by several events, one of which was the two-year disqualification of T. J. Dillashaw. It seemed that the retirement age for this division, the refusal of prohibited substances and the crushing defeat in the last performance would significantly lower the value of its shares. But, despite all these moments, in the spring of the year before last, fans of mixed martial arts froze in anticipation of the return of once one of the most formidable bantamweights of the league.

And we waited – on July 25, as part of the main fight of the UFC Fight Night 191 tournament, the veteran will enter the octagon after a long downtime and fight against Corey Sandhagen, who may turn out to be both a guide to another title fight, and an executioner who put an end to a once bright career.

• Corey Sandhagen vs T. J. Dillashaw;
• Corey Sandhagen;
• T. J. Dillashaw;
• Comparative analysis;
• Game Totals Prediction.

Corey Sandhagen vs T. J. Dillashaw

Corey Sandhagen

The second number of the official rating of the organization in the lightest weight and the former champion of the SCL league in the featherweight. The American's base is kickboxing – he began practicing this martial art at an early age, since then he has won several championship titles according to the WKA association. He also has a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in his arsenal.

Before joining the UFC roster, Sandhagen played for three years in a variety of American organizations. And if only ardent fans of mixed martial arts heard about his first promotions, then the last ones-RFA and LFA, should be known to everyone. It is in these leagues that he has established himself as a fighter who is ready to sit down with Dayna White at a round table. After joining the ranks of the fighters of the best promotion in the world, the athlete quickly won five victories in a row and went to a pre-title fight, which he lost, for which he was subsequently rehabilitated by two new victorias.

Strengths

Sandhagen is not a kickboxer with world fame, but by practicing this martial art, he has developed a distinctive style of fighting from others. On his feet, he is distinguished by a high speed of work, constant movement, attacking from a variety of angles and the ability to maintain a high pace throughout the fight.

Being perhaps the largest representative of the lightest weight of the league, the American creates corresponding difficulties for his opponents. It is difficult to get him in the stand and control him in the stalls, and also you should expect various surprises from him, since throwing kicks and flying knees is not a problem for him.

Weaknesses

Being deprived of a fighter in terms of physical strength, the prospect often loses power martial arts, later ending up on the ground. During his entire stay in the league, he was able to block less than a third of the opponents ' attempts to hold a takedown, which, of course, lowers the value of his shares in fights with strong wrestlers.

The current form and readiness of the fighter

In the last five fights, the athlete won four victories with one failure. He defeated John Lineker, Rafael Assuncao, Marlon Moraes and Frankie Edgar, and was stopped by Aljamein Sterling. The American will enter the match in question after six months of downtime and four months of purposeful preparation.

T. J. Dillashaw

The former contender for the champion's belt and the champion in the lightest and lightest weights of the league, respectively. Before starting his career in mixed martial arts, the athlete was engaged in freestyle wrestling and competed in the NCAA first division, adding a good base of work on the mat to his baggage. He also has purple and black belts at his disposal in such disciplines as Thai boxing and Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, respectively.

Having collected a professional record of 4-0, the fighter received an invitation to the 14th season of The Ultimate Fighter project, which, of course, he took advantage of. At the tournament, he reached the final, in which he quickly flew away from John Dodson, but, despite this, he subsequently still got a place in the UFC roster thanks to his previous victories. During the first two years of his career in the league, Dillashaw became the champion of the lightest weight, in the status of which he lasted two fights – as part of the third defense of the belt, he met Dominic Cruz, who stopped him with a separate and, as often happens in such cases, a controversial decision of the judges. After that, the American quickly regained the title, after which he rushed to hold a super fight for the champion belt in the lightest weight, which ended for him not only with a quick defeat from Henry Cejudo, but also with the loss of a fighter's license for two years and the title in the lightest weight category, respectively.

Strengths

The American spends most of his fights on his feet, where he is distinguished by both well-developed kickboxing skills and strong pressure for five rounds. At the peak of his form, the American often interrupted his opponents two or three times, although it is unclear whether he is capable of the same results after stopping taking erythropoietin, which promotes the supply of oxygen to the muscles.

Despite the simple, the athlete retains the status of the league's record holder for the number of wins by knockouts within the lightest weight. Moreover, he can put out the light not only with a classic punch from the hand, but also with a kick, which was demonstrated by him in more than one battle.

Weaknesses

Thanks to a good base in the fight, the athlete has repeatedly emerged victorious from grappler exchanges with jitters with black belts. But, probably, he would have remembered about his background more often if not for the low efficiency of his transfers – 37%. At the same time, it was assembled mainly on low-level parterres.

The current form and readiness of the fighter

After being defeated by Henry Cejudo, Dillashaw came off a series of four victories, which he collected in fights against Rafael Asuncao, John Lineker and Cody Garbrandt, whom he defeated twice. On the eve of the matchup under consideration, he has two and a half years of downtime behind him, for leveling which he received four months, which, of course, is not enough to return to his former conditions.

Bookmakers ' odds

Analysts of the 1xbet betting company consider Corey Sandhagen to be the favorite of this fight, the probability of winning is estimated at a coefficient of 1.55, while T. J. Dillashaw is offered to bet on Victoria with a coefficient of 2.45. Download 1xbet and bet on the favorite.

Comparative analysis

Sandhagen often surpassed his counterpart in size, and this case was no exception – he has 8 and 13 centimeters advantages over his compatriot in height and reach, respectively, which will definitely affect the course of the confrontation. The former champion always fought with smaller or the same size fighters who were also right-handed, while the prospect prefers a left-sided stance.

Corey, obviously, does not have such a heavy punch as a veteran, but at the same time he is faster, more agile and accurate, as well as less straightforward. In the stalls, we are dealing with completely different fighters. Dillashaw is a wrestler without well-developed skills of holding techniques, who prefers to work with ground and pound. The Sandhagen is a clean and unpredictable jitter with good control due to its significant dimensions. But at the same time, he has problems with protection against transfers, which his counterpart with not the highest transfer performance may well and probably will try to take advantage of, since his capabilities look less rosy in the rack.

Corey Sandhagen vs T. J. Dillashaw Fight Prediction

It is unlikely that today the former champion is the guy who once scared the entire UFC lightweight. History does not yet know the fighters who returned to the octagon after being disqualified by the anti-doping agency in the best or at least the previous form. He has also been idle for two and a half years and is at an age that is considered retirement within his division and significantly affects speed, reaction, mobility and endurance. In this case, only skills and experience are not affected, which are not enough to beat a fresh and creative prospect.

Prediction: Corey Sandhagen