Cory Sandhagen takes on Mario Bautista: ‘I’m more technical, more skilled’

Cory Sandhagen has hovered around the UFC bantamweight title picture for years without breaking through. He has made two bids for championship gold, failed both times, and now finds himself back in familiar territory – needing another win in one of the promotion’s deepest divisions.His assignment at International Fight Week is a familiar face. Seven years after Mario Bautista’s submission in Bautista’s third UFC appearance, Sandhagen meets him again in a fight with far greater consequences than their first meeting ever.The matchup comes with contrasting stories. Bautista framed it as a match advantage and vowed to make it to the finish line. Sandhagen doesn’t buy that assessment.In an exclusive interview with Timesofindia.com, Sandhagen discusses how Bautista has evolved since their first meeting, why he rejects the wrestling narrative, the lessons learned from his last title loss and why he believes a showdown with Sean O’Malley makes the most sense if he gets the better of Bautista.excerpts: This is a rematch with Mario after seven years. How different is he now from the rookie you faced in 2019?I think he’s a much better fighter now. I think we are both. He has come a long way and I think it will be an uphill battle.Mario says he’s looking for a goal and sees it as a match mismatch. How do you react to such a public assessment of the fight?I think Mario has had almost no big offensive game that I’ve seen. Umar defeated him by a much larger margin. He was held down while I was taken down several times, but each time I got up immediately. So I don’t know what he’s talking about.What do you see as Mario’s single greatest strength and how do you plan to neutralize it?I think Mario’s greatest strength is that he’s a really hardworking guy. He has a lot of confidence and doesn’t give up. I plan to counter this by being the same and at the same time more technical, skilled and hard working than him.You’ve had spectacular finishes against guys like Edgar and Moraes, as well as tactical wins over opponents like Font. How to decide, fight the fight, whether to go for the fireworks or settle for a controlled win?You always try to win with fireworks, but sometimes the other guy does really good things and you don’t get him out of there. That’s just how it goes.

Cory Sandhagen vs. Merab Dvalishvili (AP Photo)

After UFC 320 (Merab Dvalishvili) you said the fight was absolutely winnable. What specifically went wrong and how did you deal with it in preparation for Mario?I think if I had a better second round I would have gone well. I also made a few technical mistakes that are pretty easy to fix and I think would have changed the outcome of the match. So it really came down to those technical mistakes and not getting hurt as badly in the second round.You were one of the top bantamweight years. How much of this fight is about proving to yourself that you can still handle the new wave of fighters like Mario, not just the older contenders?I think I only have a few more matches than Mario, so I don’t really see him as a promising guy. I think he’s been in the UFC for a while now. Maybe I’ve only been in the UFC a year or two longer than him.

Mario Bautista (special arrangement)

So I don’t really see him as a promising fighter. I just see him as someone who hasn’t been in as many big fights as me and hasn’t fought for titles yet. I guess I’m just more experienced, but I don’t see him as a UFC rookie.Finally, if you win this fight, what do you think the UFC should book next? O’Malley, Merab again, or someone else?Realistically, I think I have one more fight before I can fight for the title again. But the only match the fans really want to see is me vs. O’Malley.I hope it will be so. If it’s not O’Malley, then I’m open to anyone or any idea because I know I probably have one more fight left. But if I beat Mario really decisively and do something crazy to win, that could change as well. Realistically though, I think I have one more fight and I think it should be against O’Malley. I really don’t know who else would be there.(Watch UFC 329 – McGregor vs Holloway 2 on 12 July 2026 from 6:30 AM IST Live on Sony Sports Ten 1 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 2 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 3 SD & HD (Hindi), Sony Sports Ten 4 SD (Tamil, Telugu and Kannada) and Sony L