On October 30, another title fight will be held at UFC 267. The two most dangerous strikers of the division will share the octagon for the interim bantamweight title fight. Firstly, Petr Yan was supposed to face Aljamain Sterling for the second time at UFC 267. Still, doctors did not allow Aljo to participate, so Cory replaced the champion, and the winner of this fight will be a mandatory fight for the champion.
Bet on Petr Yan vs. Cory Sandhagen with 1xBetPetr Yan has one of the cleanest boxing skills in the UFC, not only in division. His only and main weapon is his hands, and sometimes his kicks, too. In his professional career, he has 7 K.O., 1 submission, and 7 decision victories. He came in the UFC from Russian promotion ACB in 2018. He earned 6 victories and fought for the vacated title fight against former featherweight champion Jose Aldo. Aldo damaged Yan's front leg in the early rounds, but Petr showed the heart of a lion, remained calm, and earned a 5th round TKO victory. From my point of view, his biggest advantage is that he can fight equally from the orthodox stance and the southpaw stance. So changing stances and fighting equally is a really massive advantage while striking.
Cory Sandhagen is a brutal striker with spectacular finishes. Like his rival, he signed in the UFC in 2018, but he signed from another great promotion, called LFA. In the UFC, he already earned 4 K.O., 1 submission, and 2 decision victories. He brutally Knockouted former title challenger Marlon Moraes and former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. Unlike his rival, Cory is using his kicks, knees, and punches for the victory. His last performance was against former bantamweight champion T.J Dillashaw. T.J. earned a split decision victory, but many fans think that Cory deserved that victory. Cory landed massive punches and damaged T.J.'s face so badly.
It is one of the most highly anticipated fights for me. I can't wait to see two killers inside the octagon because I am too intrigued to see who will leave the cage as the winner. It's hard to predict anything because there are lots of circumstances to think about.
Bet on Petr Yan vs. Cory Sandhagen with 1xBetPetr Yan is opening this bout as the favorite, and it's logical because he is a killer striker and is fighting against another striker, but to be honest, Petr has never faced such a level guy before. Cory will have a 9 CM reach advantage, he is using kicks and knees very effectively, so I would not say that Petr would easily destroy him in striking. Moreover, Cory already faced T.J. amazingly, who has really good striking skills, and Cory served more damage than T.J.
In a word, betting against Petr Yan is never a good decision, but I think that the advantage of kicks and reach advantage will affect the game. Petr was preparing for grappler and BJJ fighter for a whole year, so facing such a striker in such a short time? It's interesting.
Cory will open this bout as the underdog with the odds 3.4, while winning of Yan has the odd 1.35. Cory can finish anyone, but since it is too hard to imagine Petr Yan being knocked out, Cory might earn the victory in either way.