If [autotag]Cory Sandhagen[/autotag] needed to work on his wrestling to win a title, he showed that progression Saturday.
It may not have been the tune the fans in “Music City” wanted to hear to close the night, but Sandhagen’s takedowns and top control en route to a unanimous decision gave him a safe win and kept him in the title mix. It also may not have been what his boss wanted to see. Social media reports during the headliner indicated UFC president Dana White left his cageside seat in the middle of the fight and didn’t come back.
Sandhagen (17-4 MMA, 10-3 UFC) largely outwrestled [autotag]Rob Font[/autotag] (20-7 MMA, 10-6 UFC) on his way to a unanimous decision in their 140-pound contract weight bout, which was the UFC on ESPN 50 main event at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. The fight was five pounds up from bantamweight because Font took it on less than three weeks’ notice.
Sandhagen swept the judges’ scorecards for a trio of 50-45 scores and his third straight win and landed all seven of his takedown attempts. Then he called for a title shot against the winner of bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling and Sean O’Malley, who fight in two weeks in Boston.
“I wanted to put a more exciting fight on. I’ve been dealing with a lot of elbow problems recently, and I think I tore my tricep in the first round. … I’m a wrestler now, apparently. Sterling and O’Malley, I’ll see you guys in Boston. I’ve got next.”
Sandhagen shot for a takedown about 15 seconds into the fight and got it. But he found himself in a bit of a precarious spot when Font latched onto his neck for a guillotine choke attempt. Sandhagen defended well, though, and when Font worked for a kimura a few moments later, it allowed him to roll his way off the canvas and back to his feet. But two minutes in, Sandhagen quickly shot for another takedown, and he landed a solid right hand when Font tried to get back to his feet. With 30 seconds left in the frame, Font caught a Sandhagen kick and used it for a takedown, though he didn’t do much with the position other than remind Sandhagen he was there for a fight.
The second round was a dominant one for Sandhagen with a quick takedown, then top control throughout the frame. Font’s defense from his back was good enough to keep Sandhagen from getting momentum toward a finish. All that was worth, though, was Font had to suffer the same plight in the middle round. Sandhagen took him down a little later that round, but still added another more than four minutes of control time to his stats. With a minute left, he landed some solid punches from up top. Font got back to his feet with 35 seconds left and had to duck away from a second Sandhagen jumping knee.
After the third, the fans in “Music City” weren’t shy about letting Sandhagen in particular know their disappointment that 15 minutes hadn’t brought much of a barnburner for their last fight of the night. Font’s head coach, Tyson Chartier, told hm he needed to wake up in the final two rounds if he wanted to win the fight.
But 20 seconds into the fourth, Sandhagen drilled another easy takedown, and Font’s frustrations continued. They carried over to the fifth, a round in which Sandhagen at least threatened for a few moments with a D’Arce choke, until Sandhagen heard his scorecard sweep announced by Bruce Buffer.
Sandhagen won for the third straight time after back-to-back losses to T.J. Dillashaw and former champ Petr Yan in an interim title fight. Font went back to the loss column after a win over Adrian Yanez, and the Boston-based bantamweight now has dropped three of his past four.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 49 results include:
- Cory Sandhagen def. Rob Font via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
- Tatiana Suarez def. Jessica Andrade via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 1:31
- Dustin Jacoby def. Kennedy Nzechukwu via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:22
- Diego Lopes def. Gavin Tucker via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 1:38
- Tanner Boser def. Aleksa Camur via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Ludovit Klein def. Ignacio Bahamondes via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Kyler Phillips def. Raoni Barcelos via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Carlston Harris def. Jeremiah Wells via submission (anaconda choke) – Round 3, 1:50
- Billy Quarantillo def. Damon Jackson via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Cody Durden def. Jake Hadley via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Sean Woodson def. Dennis Buzukja via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Asu Almabaev def. Ode Osbourne via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:11
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 50.
