Daniel Cormier News

Justin Golightly - January 23, 2018

After a dominant performance against Volkan Oezdemir, Daniel Cormier let everyone know that they wouldn’t see him too much longer. March 20th next year, Cormier will turn 40-years old and has decided to retire. Of course, as we all know, minds can always change especially when it comes to MMA retirements, but it seems like the current UFC light heavyweight champion is serious. He opened up more about his intentions today and would like to have three fights before he finally walks away from the sport. “I’ve got a little break in my thumb and also some ligament damage. I don’t like to do surgery, so I’m going to try and put off the surgery. […] If it’s starting to heal, I’m not going to do the surgery, I’m going to some PRP (Platelet-rich plasma). I prefer to not go under the knife. I would rather just always try to do the alternative so as not to have too much time off. There was a break in there and also a torn ligament in my wrist, so that’s why I was having so many issues after the fight. It just takes longer. I want to try to not have surgery. […] I don’t really have the time to waste.”

Tom Taylor - January 23, 2018

Last weekend, in the co-main event of UFC 220, UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier defended his title with a second-round TKO of Volkan Oezdemir. From the sounds of it, this will probably one of the last fights of Cormier’s career. While he hopes to fight through 2018, Cormier said on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour that he will retire by March 20, 2019 – the day of his 40th birthday.

Tom Taylor - January 22, 2018

Last weekend, at UFC 220, we watched UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier thwart dangerous challenger Volkan Oezdemir, and UFC light heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic turn away the dangerous Francis Ngannou. In the wake of these successful title defenses, there has been a deafening outcry for the two champions to fight each other at heavyweight. Daniel Cormier addressed this possibility at the UFC 220 post-fight press conference. Apparently, it’s not something he’s keen on.

Russell Sai - January 20, 2018

Daniel Cormier showed the world why he is the UFC light heavyweight champion on Saturday night in Boston at UFC 220. “DC” was matched up against the quickly rising star Volkan Oezdemir, who went into the title fight unbeaten in the UFC. Cormier was able to walk through an early offensive attack from “No Time” in the early part of the first round and then turned things up as the round came to and end. Cormier ended up finishing Oezdemir in the second round by TKO.

Justin Golightly - January 20, 2018

That moment when @DC_MMA got a good luck message from …. Jon Jones?#UFC220 @JonJones pic.twitter.com/pHEinkhkZo — UFC (@ufc) January 20, 2018

Justin Golightly - January 20, 2018

Volkan Oezdemir will be one half of the crew who will try to dethrone the UFC champions tonight and prove that they belong at the very top of the heap in their division. Many people are counting them both out, including their opponents of course. Al that aside, Oezdemir believes that not only did Daniel Cormier commit a crucial error in promoting their UFC 220 light heavyweight title clash, but that all of the pressure is on him instead of the challenger. “I just don’t understand the logic here. So, [Daniel Cormier]’s coming off a loss. He’s using this fight to gain back his popularity, right? He has a stink on his shoulder. He needs this fight to bring something to his legacy and the only thing he does is try to make me look bad. It doesn’t look good on him, you know? What does he do if he gets a win on me? It’s nothing. His legacy is not going to get back. This is the fight where he needs it. He needs the win and that’s why there is so much pressure on him. So, the win that he needs is gonna be discredited. You know, that’s kind of stupid. I just don’t understand the logic in here.”

Justin Golightly - January 19, 2018

We are only a day away from UFC 220 and Daniel Cormier attempting to defend his title against hard-hitting Volkan Oezdemir. So many fights have been derailed by the early weigh-ins, luckily that isn’t the case for today. Cormier hit the scales successfully today, but that doesn’t mean it was a walk in the park. The UFC light heavyweight shared a message after weighing in, complete with a picture of him looking like a suffocating mummy wrapping in a pile of white towels. It’s worth it but this is the worst shit ever honestly. Someone has to pay for this shit!!! #ufc220 can’t wait! Thanks to my team for helping me get thru making weight. I love you guys. @themeleeway you are the man , @lockhartandleith the best in the business pic.twitter.com/Mzluz3MtOH

Tom Taylor - January 18, 2018

UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier endures a very tough cut down to his division’s 205-pound limit, and that’s no secret. If you’ve seen any footage of the champ in the immediate lead-up to his Saturday night showdown with Volkan Oezdemir, it’s clear that this present weight cut is no exception. While he probably has it well under control, he certainly looks a little rough. Apparently, Oezdemir hasn’t hesitated to let Cormier know that he looks a somewhat depleted. Cormier detailed a quick run-in with Oezdemir and his “minions” in a Thursday afternoon Instagram post.

Drake Riggs - January 17, 2018

Daniel Cormier will get questions about Jon Jones for the rest of his life and if this isn’t your first day discovering MMA, you know exactly why. The two have had one the most heated rivalries in the sport’s entire history and despite coming out on the wrong end of each of their fights, reasons outside the octagon have turned Cormier into more of the winner than the loser. After their first fight in January of 2015, Jones beat Cormier fair and square through five rounds on route to a unanimous decision. After that, Jones was expected to end up defending his UFC light heavyweight title against one of if not the most dangerous strikers in the division’s history, Anthony “Rumble” Johnson at UFC 187. That was until Jones got into a hit and run incident while under the influence. This led to his stripping of the title and putting Cormier right back into the title picture where he would go on to defeat Johnson for the vacant belt.

Tom Taylor - January 17, 2018

This Saturday, in the co-main event of the stacked UFC 220, Switzerland’s Volkan Oezdemir will attempt to steal the light heavyweight title from champion Daniel Cormier. To prepare for this monumental challenge, Oezdemir has been preparing at the talent-rich Combat Club in Lantana, Florida – a space he shares with former middleweight champion and long-time Cormier training partner Luke Rockhold. In fact, he’s even gotten a few rounds in with Rockhold.

Justin Golightly - January 16, 2018

Someone bring Daniel Cormier some swishy pants and a whistle. If there is an epitome of a wrestling coach, it’s the UFC light heavyweight champion with his shirt tucked tight into his work out pants. Throughout his career, he’s dropped iconic lines that’d be at home in any high school or college gym: ‘Ineligible for competition,’ and ‘get your academics in order’ to just name a few. Now, he’s dropped yet another iconic speech for UFC 220. Cormier wants to know how junior varsity Volkan Oezdemir stands a shot at him when the varsity crew couldn’t get it done. “There’s varsity and there’s JV. Have you ever heard of that? Henri Hooft is a great guy. Greg Jones is a fantastic guy. I don’t know who the jiu-jitsu coach is down there, they’re all fantastic guys. They had a wrestle-off, Anthony [Johnson] whipped Volkan [Oezdemir], so Volkan became a training partner. He went to get beat up. They sent the A-Guy in there, he got whipped. They built him back up, he came back in there again and he got whipped. Now he’s gone. So now they’re going to bring the JV guy.”

Justin Golightly - January 13, 2018

The main and the co-main event of UFC 220 in Boston have a lot in common. Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier are both champions who have passed the tests of many incredible threats. The names in their win columns are intimidating to say the least. They’ll be up against young talent that boast terrifying knockout power that fans love. Daniel Cormier is here to remind you that there is more to this game than just punching someone very hard. Anthony Johnson was one of the most feared hitters in the UFC light heavyweight division, but in the end it didn’t allow him to beat Cormier. “I think people fall in love with power punchers. I believe it’s just because they finish the fights. They finish fights in no time. The fight is going and all of a sudden it’s over. You got guys like [Anthony] ‘Rumble’ [Johnson] who was knocking everybody out. Then you have guys like Volkan [Oezdemir], they can knock everybody out and people fall in love with them.”

Justin Golightly - January 11, 2018

We’re just over a week away from two huge title fights in Boston for UFC 220. In a way, the main and co-main events are mirror images of each other. Two hyped newcomers in Volkan Oezdemir and Francis Ngannou with one-punch knockout power, against champions seemingly on a completely different level than their competition. Daniel Cormier keeps reminding Oezdemir of that fact in the lead-up to their big showdown. Against Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson and before that against the top heavyweights in the world, Cormier has felt that power and has never been taken out by it. “It’s crazy that this kid thinks he can knock me out with one punch. What happens when it doesn’t happen? You will all see next Saturday. I’ll stand with this kid and still beat him. There are levels to this game and this guy ain’t on the level. Volkan Oezdemir, you have done well but now you’re in over your head. Sharpening my tools with Javier Mendez. I am who I am because of who I am. Hard work and commitment is something I’ve always had in spades. I can’t wait to show you what we have been cooking up. We are AKA. Down goes Volkan.” — Daniel Cormier via his Instagram.

Justin Golightly - December 30, 2017

Daniel Cormier and Volkan Oezdemir stared down for the first time yesterday for their upcoming fight at UFC 220. While a couple of mild verbal jabs haven hit social media and while they were on the stage for the press conference, mostly it’s been pretty quiet as far as fight hype goes. However, after the presser, Oezdemir decided to take to Twitter and get things really started with the UFC light heavyweight champion. Daniel Cormier fired back while somehow incorporating his Game of Thrones fandom as well. …That’s impressive. When you already know what’s going to happen but you let him talk… #enjoyyourlast3weeks #ufc220 pic.twitter.com/0BgGtje11N

Drake Riggs - December 26, 2017

The current Light Heavyweight king has gone by one name since May of 2015 and that name is Daniel Cormier. Since he defeated Anthony “Rumble” Johnson at UFC 187 to become the champion, Cormier has won three fights accompanied by one no contest. That no contest coming in his last outing when he took on bitter rival Jon Jones in a highly anticipated rematch that headlined UFC 214. The fight’s initial result was a third-round knockout loss for the champion, Cormier. But not too soon after the night of the event, Jones was busted for steroids and the result was overturned. After a recent interview with FloCombat, Cormier opened up a bit more about his feelings on the fight among other things.

Chris Taylor - December 24, 2017

2018 could be Daniel Cormier‘s last year of fighting! The UFC light heavyweight champion of the world, who turns 39-year-old in 2018, recently sat down with ESPN.com where he discussed his future in fighting.

Justin Golightly - December 23, 2017

Francis Ngannou and Stipe Miocic will be decided who is the baddest man on the planet at UFC Boston, but if Daniel Cormier successfully defends his light heavyweight belt on the same card, he could move up and test that title as well. He was asked about going back to heavyweight for a giant fight to close out his career in a recent interview and said it’d be ‘the most amazing thing in the world.’ Not only that, but it seems like he’s thought about it a lot. His coach Javier Mendez opened up about the idea and thinks it could happen, with Cain Velasquez’s permission that is. “Yeah, [Daniel Cormier moving up to fight for the heavyweight title is] a fun theory too and it could be a realistic theory, and this is how it would work out if it did happen, okay. Cain [Velasquez] would talk to DC or DC would go to Cain, he’d go, ‘Hey, Cain, I wanna fight for the title against Stipe, do you have a problem for me going that one shot?’ And if Cain says yes, which I’m sure if that’s what they agreed on, then yeah, that would happen. That’s not far-fetched. It really isn’t, because that could be something that could happen. But it would be between DC and Cain, they would make that decision jointly together.”

Justin Golightly - December 21, 2017

Francis Ngannou is one fight away from fulfilling the prophecies of being the next big thing. He’s scheduled to fight Stipe Miocic for the UFC heavyweight title in Boston on January 20th. Coincidentally, on the same card as Daniel Cormier’s title defense against Volkan Oezdemir. Aside from one loss and one no contest to Jon Jones, DC is perfect in his career, both at light heavyweight and heavyweight. As his career reaches its peak and cuts get harder, Cormier could go back up to heavyweight to end his career with a bang. This could set up one of the biggest fights in UFC history. “It would be the most amazing thing in the world [to challenge the UFC heavyweight champion as my final fight], but that would take some thinking, some talking and a real solid plan to try to get back to the type of weight that I would need to compete against [Stipe Miocic or Francis Ngannou]. Because, again, I’m not going in there to lose and say I gave it my best shot. If I go in there with Miocic or Ngannou, I’m going to win. That’s just who I am. So that would just be me and my team really coming up with a solid plan on how I’m going to get up to a healthy, strong, 245, 235, 240 pounds to go and fight those dudes.”