Cory Sandhagen claims Deiveson Figueiredo turned down year-end UFC fight: “I thought Figgy was a little bit more about that life than that”

Cory Sandhagen claims that former UFC flyweight champion Deveison Figueiredo turned down a fight against him.

Sandhagen is hoping for a fight that puts him right back in title contention after suffering a unanimous decision loss to Umar Nurmagomedov. While he was hoping to share the Octagon with former UFC bantamweight titleholder Sean O’Malley, that fight won’t be happening anytime soon. That’s because O’Malley will be on the shelf due to a torn labrum.

Sandhagen had turned his attention to Figueiredo for a showdown before the end of 2024, but that doesn’t look to be in the cards either.

RELATED: CORY SANDHAGEN ISSUES STATEMENT FOLLOWING UFC ABU DHABI LOSS TO UMAR NURMAGOMEDOV: “TOUGH SPORT”

Cory Sandhagen Says Deiveson Figueiredo Turned Down Fight

In a new video posted on his YouTube channel, Cory Sandhagen claimed that Deiveson Figueiredo was offered to fight him, but didn’t take it (via Bloody Elbow).

“Figgy turned down the fight against me [earlier] in September which is just kind of whack because I thought Figgy was a little bit more about that life than that.

“I’m kind of actually hurt that Figgy doesn’t want to fight me in December, but maybe he just wants to take the easier fights – I don’t know what that dude’s plan is.”

It’s possible that Figueiredo is holding out hope that he will receive a UFC Bantamweight Championship opportunity. Newly-minted titleholder Merab Dvalishvili has expressed interest in the fight.

What’s next for Sandhagen will be interesting to see. It’s clear that he’s eager to get back inside the Octagon to raise his stock after seeing his three-fight winning streak come to an end.

Sandhagen is still hoping to reach that elusive UFC bantamweight gold. While he has never competed for the undisputed bantamweight title, Sandhagen did fight Petr Yan for the interim championship in a losing effort back in 2021.