After winning the UFC light heavyweight title, Daniel Cormier proudly said that it’s okay with him if Jon Jones will decide to never come back and try to fight again for the title. That was four months ago, after Cormier won over Anthony Johnson. But just recently, it looks like Cormier changed his mind.
“Obviously, I need [Jones]. As I move forward, in this fight in October and I face Alexander [Gustafsson], I need that guy. I need that guy to get back in here and fight me again. For my journey to be complete and for me to be complete as I finish this sport, I need him. And honestly, I wish him all the best so that he can actually get back and I can stop playing around with these guys and get back to business.,” Cormier said Friday during a recent interview.
Jones won over Cormier last UFC 182 via unanimous decision and was able to hold on to his light heavyweight title. However, he lost the title when was suspended because of a felony hit-and-run arrest. There is no definite date as to when Jones will be allowed to go back because the legal process is still ongoing.
Since Jones is not around, Cormier had the chance to fight and win over Johnson for the title in the UFC 187 event last May. This coming October 3rd, Cormier will be going up against Gustafsson for the first time; the event will be held in Houston, Texas. However, Cormier doesn’t think that he has to win over Gustafsson to prove that he deserves to be called a champion.
“I think beating Anthony Johnson solidifies that. He knocked me halfway across the Octagon. It’s about me. I don’t really care too much about people saying I don’t have a real belt. I know how hard I’ve worked. I know how hard I’ve committed to this goal. I get my hand raised when I fight. I’ve lost once and every other time I’ve dominated the competition. That will not change on Oct. 3. I think that Alexander Gustafsson is a good fighter, but there is levels to this fighting and I’m just a little bit better than he is,” Cormier said.
Cormier, who has a record of 16-1, also made fun of Gustafsson’s calling card. Gustafsson is famous for giving Jones the most challenging bout in his career two years ago. Gustafsson almost won over Jones and gave the world a shock when the bout lasted five rounds. After that, Gustafsson has won over Jimi Manuwa, but lost by knockout during the first round when he went up against Johnson last January.
“If I was Alexander Gustafsson, honestly, I would probably be a little upset at you guys, because you always talk about how close he fought Jon Jones. What about his Earth-shattering win over Jimi Manuwa or his, uhh, monumental win that was … do you know? I mean really, somebody else. You guys talk about a fight that he lost. He lost. Let’s stop talking about the fight that he lost and talk about something that this guy has done positive. And when you look at it that way, you guys know exactly what’s going to happen on Oct. 3. He’s going to lose to me. When you look at it objectively and not because he fought a guy closer than I fought him, you realize what’s going to happen on Oct. 3. Out of respect for Alexander, please talk about some of these Earth-shattering wins that he has over the course of his career,” Cormier said sarcastically.
Before Cormier went into the MMA sport, he was a former Olympian and an NCAA wrestling runner-up. However, he wasn’t able to get a gold in that sport. And now that he has, Cormier isn’t making any apologies that he was able to achieve it when Jones wasn’t present.
“Over the course of my life, I’ve always kind of come short and obviously having this now and winning under the circumstances that I fought under, I got the job done. For me, I’ve been fighting for a short period of time. It’s been 5 ½ years and I’ve won the Strikeforce championship and the UFC championship, so I’m good. This is going as good as I could have ever imagined,” Cormier said.