The MMA Daily

This is going to be an absolute banger, as both men are as exciting as it gets in the UFC. Petr Yan is a buzzsaw. With a well rounded game, Yan has shown a multitude of ways of dominating opponents. Profiling mainly though as a striker, Yan has excellent footwork, is accurate and throws with volume. The same could be said about Sandhagen on the feet, as he too fits all those qualities. With excellent size for the division, the lanky Sandhagen is a high output striker who can break opponents with his cardio and pace. The one lacking aspect of Sandhagen’s game though is wrestling. Not only is he not a threat to bring the fight to the mat, but his takedown defense is something that has often been exploited. However, against T.J. Dillashaw, Sandhagen shrugged off seventeen of nineteen attempts to improve his takedown accuracy to 65% in the UFC. 

As for a prediction, I’m going with Yan. While I expect this to be an absolute war on the feet, Yan has shown that he isn’t afraid to mix his wrestling. With a 66.7% takedown accuracy, Yan checks in at second all-time in the Bantamweight division. The seven takedowns landed against Aljamain Sterling were not only shocking, but telling that Sandhagen may be in for a long night should Yan elect to exploit his weakness. Regardless, I believe Yan will get it done, let’s say via a late TKO stoppage due to lacerations.