Deiveson Figueiredo’s quest to reestablish himself as a bantamweight contender hit a major roadblock at UFC Iowa this past weekend. Facing Cory Sandhagen in the main event at Wells Fargo Arena, the former two-time flyweight champion suffered a second-round TKO loss after a freak knee injury forced him to signal the end of the bout.
The fight began with Sandhagen immediately taking control, shutting down Figueiredo’s leg lock attempts and peppering him with ground-and-pound. Figueiredo’s commitment to leg attacks left him vulnerable, as Sandhagen rained down strikes and arguably pitched a 10-8 first round. In the second, another scramble in the 50-50 position saw Figueiredo’s knee give out as Sandhagen reversed to top position. Figueiredo shouted in pain, and the referee quickly waved off the fight, marking the first time Figueiredo has suffered back-to-back losses in his career.
