"I was kinda hoping for Aldo or Cruz" - Cory Sandhagen reveals his ideal next opponent, hoping for a July return

Cory Sandhagen has shed light upon who he’d like to face in his next fight. ‘The Sandman’ asserted that he’s looking to fight Dominick Cruz or Jose Aldo next and could return in July.

In an interview with MMA Junkie’s Farah Hannoun, Cory Sandhagen was asked whether fellow bantamweight contender Rob Font was on his radar as a potential opponent for his next fight. Sandhagen responded by stating:

“Maybe. I was kinda hoping for [Jose] Aldo or [Dominick] Cruz because those guys kind of have a lot of juice, and that’s kind of how this business works a little bit. So, I’m still hoping for Aldo or Cruz. I think that that will set me up very nicely for maybe like, two more wins, and then I get to fight for the belt again. So, but yeah, Font, too.”

Additionally, ‘The Sandman’ highlighted that he hasn’t tasted victory inside the octagon since beating Frankie Edgar last February. That said, Sandhagen emphasized that he’s very capable of defeating anyone in the UFC bantamweight division.

The 29-year-old indicated that he doesn’t really care who he fights next. Sandhagen added that Merab Dvalishvili, too, is a possible opponent for him. Nevertheless, he suggested that Dvalishvili doesn’t have the same name value as Cruz or Aldo, which is why he’d ideally like to fight one of the latter two fighters.

Furthermore, when asked about a timeline for his return to the octagon, Sandhagen simply noted, “probably sometime in July.” He later claimed that his comeback could like materialize “probably sometime in the summer.”

Sandhagen explained that he’s long been a fan of Cruz and Aldo and has studied them over the years. Moreover, ‘The Sandman’ indicated that while Cruz is his first preference, he’d have no qualms fighting Aldo either.

Watch Cory Sandhagen’s conversation with Farah Hannoun in the video below:

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Cory Sandhagen’s quest for UFC bantamweight gold

Cory Sandhagen currently holds the No. 4 spot in the official UFC bantamweight rankings. Despite him being on a two-fight losing streak, many still view ‘The Sandman’ as a top-tier contender at 135 pounds.

His most recent fight witnessed him step up on short notice to face Petr Yan for the interim UFC bantamweight title at UFC 267 in October 2021. Sandhagen lost the closely-contested fight via unanimous decision.

Intriguingly, he’s now angling for fights against former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz and former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo. The consensus is that a win over the No. 7-ranked bantamweight Cruz or the No. 3-ranked bantamweight Aldo would help Sandhagen regain momentum as he continues his quest to capture the coveted UFC bantamweight title.