Vera vs. Sandhagen was originally set to headline a limited-capacity event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas; meanwhile, Raquel Pennington vs. Irene Aldana was rumored to headline the San Antonio card. There was a considerable online backlash to the idea of dynamic fighters Vera and Sandhagen fighting without a full house. The bantamweight tilt was soon after promoted to the San Antonio main event.
“I thought that that was so awesome and I honestly think it had a big deal to do with why they moved it to San Antonio,” Sandhagen said. “The UFC listened to them. I get flattered by that, man. I have a horrible sense of the public image. I don’t who’s hot or who’s not. I just know that my algorithm is my algorithm. But I think that it tells me that I must be doing something right as far as being a badass fighter so that people want to watch me be a main event in an arena so that they can actually come. So I was flattered, man. I think it’s happening against a really great opponent for it. I’m really flattered and really grateful for that.”
The undercard fills out nicely for this live crowd in San Antonio. Former women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm is back when she takes on Yana Santos. Always colorful Nate Landwehr is back in a featherweight contest against Austin Lingo. Top prospect Maycee Barber is ready to return to the Octagon against tough veteran Andrea Lee in a women’s flyweight contest. And middleweights Chidi Njokuani and Albert Duraev will open the main card festivities.
Below is the rest of the fight card for Saturday night with the latest odds from Caesars Sportsbook before we get to a prediction and pick on the main event.
UFC Fight Night card, odds
| Cory Sandhagen -170 |
Marlon Vera +146 |
Bantamweight |
| Holly Holm -240 |
Yana Santos +200 |
Women’s bantamweight |
| Nate Landwehr -200 |
Austin Lingo +170 |
Featherweight |
| Maycee Barber -270 |
Andrea Lee +220 |
Women’s flyweight |
| Manel Kape -180 |
Alex Perez +155 |
Flyweight |
| Chidi Njokuani -155 |
Albert Duraev +130 |
Middleweight |
UFC Fight Night viewing information
Date: March 25 | Start time: 7 p.m. ET (main card)
Location: AT&T Center – San Antonio, Texas
TV channel: ESPN | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
Prediction
Marlon Vera vs. Cory Sandhagen: Sandhagen’s five rounds with Yan should serve him well on Saturday. Both Vera and Yan are slow starters who need time to make reads on opponents before finding the timing and angles to land with fight-changing power. Sandhagen is supremely durable, well-conditioned and dynamic as a stand-up and ground fighter. His quick first-round submission loss to Aljamain Sterling was very concerning, but it remains an outlier as far as Sandhagen getting run over. Vera is a ferocious fighter with eight knockouts and eight submissions on his record. The problem Vera faces is that he doesn’t have reliable takedowns to set up those submissions. He lands an average of 0.68 takedowns per 15 minutes with an accuracy rate of 68%. Sandhagen’s less-than-stellar 63% takedown defense may encourage Vera to shoot, but the reality is neither fighter is particularly effective at wrestling. If Sandhagen can bank the first three rounds, his stamina and toughness should carry him through Vera’s late storms. Sandhagen via UD
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