Cory Sandhagen aims to tarnish the Nurmagomedov name. It is a feat that is easier said than done, as no man with the Dagestani surname has ever tasted defeat inside the octagon. It all started with Khabib Nurmagomedov who went unbeaten in his entire career, with 29 wins and no losses. Then came Umar Nurmagomedov who has fought 5 times in the organization and has not been defeated even once.
The Nurmagomedovs’ unbeaten legacy is not a fluke. Apart from meticulous training, they owe their success to a dominant Sambo fighting style carefully perfected by the late Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. However, Cory Sandhagen intends to break this legacy as during an interview with Demetrious Johnson, he claimed he would be the first man to beat a Nurmagomedov, saying,
“The Nurmagomedov family has zero losses, I was really excited for the challenge to actually go out and figure out that problem because he does have a super unique style…I had the answer to the problem.”
While Sandhagen believes he has decoded the answer to beating the Nurmagomedov style, he could not put his words into action as the fight got canceled due to Umar Nurmagomedov’s shoulder injury. Hence, now that the bout is back on, ‘The Sandman’ is eager to prove that he has indeed solved the problem.
Meanwhile, during the same interview, Sandhagen even called out Ariel Helwani, and the podcast host was surprisingly quick to acknowledge it.
Cory Sandhagen called out Ariel Helwani for a match and the podcast host has agreed
While Cory Sandhagen is determined to have Ariel Helwani as his next opponent, they are to swap out their fighting gloves for the basketball. The MMA Hour host plays basketball regularly and is very confident in his abilities. However, ‘The Sandman’ believes it will be a walk in the park for him to 1v1 the podcast host in a match to 21, as he said,
“Ariel, your nose is not going to help you win this basketball game. You can get it any time, any place and I will beat you in a game of 21….Let’s go 10 minutes.”
Ariel Helwani gave his own cocky response to the UFC fighter on X. The 41-year-old claimed he won’t even need 10 minutes to beat Cory Sandhagen. Well, it seems like ‘The Sandman’ had already prepared for this situation as he immediately started bringing up excuses in case he lost. Still, only time can tell if Helwani will face Sandhagen on the Basketball court.
