Nurmagomedov trumps ‘Sandman’ in Abu Dhabi

Umar Nurmagomedov continued his unbeaten record with a unanimous decision triumph over Cory Sandhagen in the bantamweight main event of a UFC Fight Night at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on the evening of Saturday 3 August 2024.

The ‘Young Eagle’, who moves to 18-0 as a professional MMA fighter, is now set to have a shot at the bantamweight championship, which is currently held by Sean O’Malley and will be on the line against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306 next month.

Nurmagomedov took the match 50-45 49-46 49-46 on the judges' scorecards. ‘Sandman’ did well to defend the majority of the Russian’s takedown attempts, but Nurmagomedov proved the more proficient striker and was fully justified in being awarded a dominant win.

“He was more tough than I expected [...] he is like iron,” said Nurmagomedov in his post-fight interview. “I tried to take him down, but he has a good defence.”

The 28-year-old added, “Doesn’t matter who is gonna be next, just give me a title shot.”

In the co-main event, Sharabutdin Magomedov overcame Michal Oleksiejczuk via unanimous decision in the middleweight division, extending ‘Shara Bullet’s’ unbeaten record as a professional to 14-0.

The rest of the main card saw Joel Alvarez finish Elves Brenner in the lightweight opener; Mackenzie Dern outpointed Loopy Godinez in a women’s strawweight bout; Michael Chiesa submitted Tony Ferguson in the first round of their welterweight match; and Deiveson Figueiredo got the better of Marlon Vera via unanimous decision in a bantamweight clash.

The UFC continues next weekend with a Fight Night at the APEX Facility in Las Vegas on the morning of Sunday 11 August, headlined by a heavyweight bout between Serghei Spivac and Marcin Tybura.

UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Nurmagomedov – Main card results

- Main event: Bantamweight: Umar Nurmagomedov def. Cory Sandhagen via unanimous decision (50-45 49-46 49-46), R5, 5:00

- Middleweight: Sharabutdin Magomedov def. Michal Oleksiejczuk via unanimous decision (30-27 30-27 29-28), R3, 5:00

- Bantamweight: Deiveson Figueiredo def. Marlon Vera via unanimous decision (29-28 29-28 30-27), R3, 5:00

- Welterweight: Michael Chiesa def. Tony Ferguson via submission (rear-naked choke), R1, 3:44

- Women’s strawweight: Mackenzie Dern def. Loopy Godinez via unanimous decision (29-28 29-28 29-28), R3, 5:00

- Lightweight: Joel Alvarez def. Elves Brenner via TKO (knees), R3, 3:36