UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Raufeon Stots sought help from a top UFC contender ahead of Bellator 264.

Stots (16-1 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) trained with Cory Sandhagen in preparation of his title eliminator against Magomed Magomedov (18-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) on Friday and is happy to have reaped the benefits of training with an elite-level bantamweight.

“Cory Sandhagen is a cool dude,” Stots told MMA Junkie. “I called him out like years ago, I think before I was in the UFC, he was in the UFC making big splashes, and he needed an opponent. I called him out and then I’d seen him in an elevator, and then I was like, ‘Hey, man, I called you out a couple of weeks ago. I’m just trying to get in. Whoever I could fight.’ He hit me up on social media and was like, ‘Would you be interested in some cross training?’ And I was like, ‘F*ck yeah.’

“I’ve never done much cross training. I went down there, I had an amazing time, I had a blast. I feel like his mindset is really good, he’s really intelligent about approaching fights, and his training is like a lot similar to mine, so I was really excited. To be there, I learned some things that are beneficial to me in my game, things that I can use and apply right away.”

Bellator 264 takes place Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena. The main card airs on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.

Check out the full interview with Stots in the video above.