Sandhagen handles Figueiredo in UFC Des Moines

It was top ranked bantamweight battle between Cory Sandhagen and No. 5 ranked bantamweight Deiveson Figueiredo on Saturday night at UFC Fight Night in Des Moines, Iowa.

Both fighters entered the fight on a losing streak. Sandhagen lost his last fight to Umar Nurmagomedov that capped a three-fight losing streak for Sandhagen.

Figueiredo was defeated by former bantamweight titleholder Petr Yan in his last fight.

He moved up to the 135-pound weight class after losing the flyweight title in January 2023. He had three consecutive wins before the loss to Yan.

To open the first round, Sandhagen rallied with consecutive leg kicks. Figueiredo countered with a leg kick of his own before looking for the first takedown of the fight.

Figueiredo did get the takedown, but Sandhagen was still standing.

Figueiredo tried to take his back but slipped off allowing Sandhagen to gain top position.

Figueiredo took an advantage to isolate a leg. Sandhagen landed punches and managed to free up his leg. Sandhagen delivered hard hammer fists. Figueiredo briefly looked for a knee bar but let it go. Sandhagen pummled Figueriedo with punches while standing over him. MMAWeekly scored the round 10-9 for Sandhagen.

Sandhagen wins via TKO.

The official time of the stoppage was 4:08 of the second round.