Merab Dvalishvili Shuts Down Sandhagen to Retain Bantamweight Title – UFC 320 Highlights
Merab Dvalishvili notched another bantamweight title defense at UFC 320, handily defeating Cory Sandhagen via unanimous decision.
Sandhagen came out, landing some solid strikes in the early going. That prompted Dvalishvili to go to his grappling roughly halfway through the first, but Sandhagen did an excellent job of fending off the takedown attempts. Sandhagen appeared to land the more significant shots in the first, potentially earning himself a 10-9 on the scorecards.
Two minutes into the second, Dvalishvili let his hands go, connecting with a combination that had Sandhagen reeling. With ‘Sandman’ on wobbly legs, the champ turned up the heat, landing at will and desperately looking for an early knockout.
Somehow, Sandhagen weathered the storm, but Dvalishvili’s relentless grappling kept him from getting off any offense of his own during the round.
Dvalishvili delivered another dominant round in the third, but Sandhagen started to find his range in the fourth, connecting with a booming right hand. Still, ‘The Machine’ likely took the round after nearly cinching in a d’arce choke in the final minute.
Likely needing a finish, Sandhagen started to swing away in the fifth, but the non-stop grappling from Dvalishvili made it difficult for the challenger to muster any offense. In the end, Davalishvili would land an incredible 20 takedowns, securing his third successful bantamweight title defense.
Official Result: Merab Dvalishvili def. Cory Sandhagen via unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 49-46) to retain the UFC bantamweight championship.
