“Sandman” appeared to be well on his way to a lopsided win against Deiveson Figueiredo when the Brazilian was forced to tap out due to a knee injury in the second round of their UFC on ESPN 67 main event on Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa. Figueiredo (24-5-1, 13-5-1 UFC) asked out of the match 4:08 into Round 2.
Advertisement
Sandhagen (18-5, 11-4UFC) had taken care of business right up to the finish. He scrambled into top position after being taken down in the first round and made Figueiredo pay for repeated heel hook attempts with heavy ground-and-pound. A similar scene had begun to play out in Round 2. There, with both men fishing for leg locks, Sandhagen rolled into top position while still entangled with the two-time flyweight champion. The torque proved to be too much for Figueiredo’s left knee, …