Running it back!
No. 4-ranked Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Bantamweight contender Cory Sandhagen is set to face No. 8-ranked Mario Bautista in a rematch seven years in the making at UFC 329 during International Fight Week (Sat., July 11, 2026) inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. MagicMMAwas first to report the news.
The two first met back in 2019 at UFC Brooklyn, where Sandhagen secured a first-round armbar victory. But both fighters have evolved significantly since that night.
Sandhagen (18-6) may not have landed the showdown with Sean O’Malley he was hoping for, but instead gets a familiar face — and one of O’Malley’s former training partners.
The 34-year-old is coming off a failed bid for undisputed gold, losing to Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 320. Prior to that, he scored a TKO win over former Flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo (watch highlights).
Sandhagen is 4-2 in his last six fights and remains firmly in the title picture.
Bautista (17-3), meanwhile, gets the fight he asked for.
The 32-year-old is coming off his first UFC main event, smoking Vinicius Oliveira in the second round at UFC Vegas 113 (watch highlights). Before that, he saw an eight-fight win streak snapped by a competitive decision loss to Umar Nurmagomedov — a run that included wins over Jose Aldo, Patchy Mix, and Ricky Simon.
Now, Bautista gets a chance to avenge the first loss of his career.
Here is what UFC 329 looks like so far:
Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway (rumored)Gable Steveson vs. TBALeon Edwards vs. Daniel RodriguezCory Sandhagen vs. Mario BautistaCesar Almeida vs. Damian Pinas
To checkout UFC’s upcoming schedule of events click here.
