UFC Champion Daniel Cormier Responds To Criticism Regarding Title Controversy
Daniel Cormier is once again the light heavyweight champion in the UFC. Cormier has been named the champion in unconventional fashion. Daniel Cormier is not the UFC’s light heavyweight champion because he won his bout. How Cormier became the champ is something that he will not apologize for.
The last time Daniel Cormier was seen inside the octagon was during UFC 214. Cormier fought a returning Jon Jones, who was the previous champion prior to Cormier’s title run.
Jones had been reinstated after testing positive for cocaine (courtesy of Fox Sports) during his first showdown against Daniel Cormier at UFC 182. Jon Jones defeated Daniel Cormier, however he was stripped of the title after the failed test came to the surface. The title would eventually go to Cormier.
Daniel Cormier was left answering questions about his legitimacy as the UFC light heavyweight champion. Those questions continued up until his highly anticipated rematch with Jon Jones at UFC 214.
After controlling the fight for the first two rounds, Daniel Cormier was struck with a vicious high kick. It was a kick by Jon Jones which finished the night. All of the questions were conceivably answered until word came down that Jones had failed another drug test.
According to TMZ, Jon Jones failed the drug test from his UFC 214 bout. He tested positive for Turinabol, which is an anabolic steriod.
Jones’ positive test has cast an ominous cloud over his victory. Jones will be suspended again. Also, it led to the UFC to give the light heavyweight title back to Daniel Cormier, according to MMA Junky. While it is not ideally how Cormier wanted to become the champion, he is not apologizing for it.
Daniel Cormier has received criticism for not defeating Jon Jones to become the champion. That has created doubt in his mind about his own legitimacy. Cormier was candid in his response (courtesy of ESPN) to being named the champion again.
“The people around me, my friends, they tell me that nothing has changed because if he was not fighting completely clean, then there was no fight. But I was there. I fought. In my mind, I lost a competition, but if it was an unfair competition — I shouldn’t have been in it.”
Daniel Cormier is upset that he lost to Jon Jones, while coming to terms that his opponent did not fight clean.
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Daniel Cormier goes on to talk about the legitimacy regarding his title.
“If people aren’t interested, they have every right, but I think a lot of questions about the belt will be answered once I defend the title again. Right now, it’s hard because the last time I fought, I lost.”
Prior to be named the light heavyweight champion by the UFC, Daniel Cormier was preparing to fight for the title. Now Cormier will fight as the champion. The questions may eventually shift to the legitimacy of Jon Jones’ two victories over Daniel Cormier, instead of whether or not Cormier is the real champion.
[Featured Image by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images]
