5 most intriguing storylines to watch ahead of UFC Vegas 32

#2. Cory Sandhagen could reach a new level of success at UFC Vegas 32

Cory Sandhagen returns at UFC Vegas 32

Fresh off a highlight reel-worthy knockout win over former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar, Cory Sandhagen will take part in what is arguably the biggest fight of his career at UFC Vegas 32. The 29-year-old spitfire is set to take on ex-bantamweight kingpin T.J. Dillashaw in a title eliminator.

𝙀 𝙓 𝙋 𝙇 𝙊 𝙎 𝙄 𝙑 𝙀 💥[ @CorySandhagen | #UFCVegas32 | LIVE on @ESPN & @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/lfjTBCACDo

— UFC (@ufc) July 20, 2021

'The Sandman' has been haunting the dreams of his fellow competitors at bantamweight. He's has been collecting spectacular finishes since his arrival to the octagon. Sandhagen has now been triumphant in eight of his last nine outings. A victory over his former training partner will all but guarantee a championship matchup against either Aljamain Sterling or Petr Yan.

Granted, Sandhagen's only loss came against the current champ. But since then, the number two-ranked bantamweight seems to have improved dramatically, as is evident in his two most recent performances.

#1. Will T.J. Dillashaw redeem himself at UFC Vegas 32?

For the first time in 30 months, T.J. Dillashaw will fight at UFC Vegas 32

T.J. Dillashaw has experienced the highest of highs and lowest of lows. In 2019, Dillashaw was coming off back-to-back title wins over his blood rival Cody Garbrandt. He was poised to become the third-ever UFC champ-champ when he challenged Henry Cejudo for the UFC flyweight strap.

However, things didn't go his way as he walked away from UFC Fight Night 143 with an embarrassing TKO loss instead of a second belt.

Ahead of their #UFCVegas32 fight, Cory Sandhagen summed up his thoughts on TJ Dillashaw's past EPO use with one word.(via @bokamotoESPN) pic.twitter.com/jODRVFYz3a

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) July 19, 2021

What's even more embarrassing, however, was Dillashaw's positive test for the banned substance EPO. Following Dillashaw's failed drug test, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) sentenced him to a two-year ban. Subsequently, the UFC had to strip him of his title.

Despite only getting popped for PEDs once, there's now a cloud of suspicion hovering around Dillashaw's legacy. Are Dillashaw's accomplishments legitimate? Was he using PEDs way before the Cejudo fight? These are the questions that have marred Dillashaw's career achievements.

But if the 35-year-old can overcome ring rust and defeat a world-beater like Sandhagen at UFC Vegas 32, he could prove that his EPO incident was just a dark chapter in his career and not the entire story.