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TJ Dillashaw’s redemption arc progressed in a major way on Saturday night after the former two-time bantamweight champion returned from an absence of more than two years to win a grueling war with Cory Sandhagen in the main event of UFC Fight Night. After five sets of momentum jumps, Dillashaw clinched the split decision victory to score his first victory since August 2018.
Dillashaw quickly exited the gate, using quick strikes and targeting Sandhagen with grappling hooks to minimize his opponent’s explosive attacks. The fight almost turned badly for Dillashaw at first as he appeared to be suffering from a knee injury after Sandhagen attacked with an attempted leg lock. After the end of the first round, Dillashaw said at his corner that he felt the knee burst. But the veteran continued to fight, with the injury appearing to have little effect on his performance.
“My knee, I blew it in the first round,” Dillashaw said after the fight. “I got lazy and I knew he had a leg lock and I was relaxing on top. I got lazy and I let him blow him up at the end. I couldn’t throw my hooks when I did. shot it down. I once tried put my hooks on and hit it again. “
Sandhagen would come back strong in the second round, using his range advantage to connect with straight, sharp punches, including a hard right hand that opened up Dillashaw above his right eye. The cut seemed to bother Dillashaw intermittently for the remainder of the fight as blood flowed steadily into his eyes. But, just like with the knee, the former champion fought and continued to put pressure on Sandhagen.
The combat would settle in a pattern of long-range exchanges won by Sandhagen and hand-to-hand and grappling work that allowed Dillashaw to slow down the fight and place it at a distance more suited to his shorter range. .
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The close rounds piled up as both men would only have their moments to see the momentum return the other way. In the end, the judges favored constant pressure from Dillashaw, with two of the three official scorecards showing 48-47 for Dillashaw and one judge seeing the same score in Sandhagen’s favor.
“I love Cory Sandhagen,” Dillashaw said after the fight. “I believed in this guy before he even believed in himself. Great opponent, great fight. A bit sloppy on my part but I picked up the pace and took the win.”
Dillashaw, who missed two years of action for a failed drug test that forced him to drop the bantamweight crown, is now moving forward in his quest to win the belt for the third time. The fight had served as something of an unofficial No.1 contender fight for the winner of the upcoming UFC 267 title fight between champion Aljamain Sterling and former champion Petr Yan.
While Dillashaw has said he wants to stay active and will fight again if the winner of the October 30 fight isn’t ready by the end of the year, the title is clearly on his mind.
“Dad is going to have this belt,” he said. “Easy. It’s easy money for that belt right now.”
Saturday night also saw a handful of wild upheavals on the main map. Raulian Paiva, a big outsider in the main bantamweight co-event, rallied from near-disaster in the first round against Kyler Philips to claim a majority decision victory. Paiva has now had three straight wins, marking her return to the 135-pound division. Plus, veteran Darren Elkins proved age is just a number in his own rally of early adversity to stop Darrick Minner in the second round. Elkins, 37, claimed his second straight win after struggling early in the opening frame. The victory marked Elkins’ 11th place as an underdog while fighting in the UFC.
CBS Sports was with you all the way on Saturday to bring you all the results and highlights from the UFC Fight Night card.
UFC Fight Night Card and Results
- TJ Dillashaw beat. Cory Sandhagen by split decision (48-47, 47-48, 48-47)
- Raulian Paiva def. Kyler Phillips via majority decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-28)
- Darren Elkins beat. Darrick Minner via TKO in the second round (punches)
- Maycee Barber defeated Miranda Maverick via decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
- Adrian Yanez beat. Randy Costa via TKO in the second round (punches)
- Brendan Allen beat. Punahele Soriano via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Nassourdine Imavov beats. Ian Heinisch via TKO in the second round (punches)
- Mickey Gall def. Jordan Williams via First Round Submission (Naked Rear Choke)
- Julio Arce defeated Andre Ewell via TKO in the second round (punches)
- Sijara Eubanks beat. Elise Reed via TKO in the first round (punches)
- Diana Belbita beat. Hannah Goldy via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
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