Cory Sandhagen credits a change in mindset and lessening self-imposed pressure for enjoying his MMA career more and improving his performance in the UFC.
Cory Sandhagen, less than two months away from his fight against Marlon Vera at UFC San Antonio, was nursing a minor injury and started to contemplate the end of his career. These thoughts arose not solely due to his injury, but Sandhagen began realizing how his approach to training camps and expectations for fights had been taking a toll on him mentally. Finally, he decided to make significant changes to his preparation and long-term approach to his career.
“I was just tired of being sore because the camp had been so long, I was sitting on the couch and I was like I cannot do this for the next five years of my life if I want to,” Sandhagen revealed. “I was sitting on the couch and I’m like, ‘I’m not doing it anymore. I’m taking all of this pressure off of me. I’m just going to live every day as best I can and be present and enjoy this journey while I have it.’” This shift in mindset allowed Sandhagen to focus more on his performance and enjoy the sport. He admits that his negativity, self-doubt, and high expectations impacted not only him but also those around him.
“It gets dark in the sense where I feel like I’m breathing off energy that people don’t want to be around me,” Sandhagen said. “I definitely don’t want to do that to my fiancée, who I live with, and I definitely don’t want to do that to my coaches and my friends.” It wasn’t until he encountered a quote from Swiss psychologist Carl Jung that Sandhagen started transforming his mindset. This change in perspective greatly impacted his preparation for his fight against Vera.
Sandhagen said his issues escalated after a first-round submission loss to future UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling in 2020. The loss led to him increasing the pressure on himself to succeed, which he realized was an unhealthy approach. “Now I have found this nice in-between where I’m not as neurotic as I was before… I think I’ve found a really nice spot for me where I am right now,” Sandhagen said. The changes he made were evident in his fight against Vera, and he hopes to maintain that same attitude moving forward. “I’m glad I got to let that go. I’m glad I won so I can continue to keep trusting that because it is a much more enjoyable way to live life.”