ESPN’s Brett Okamoto has confirmed with UFC president Dana White that Daniel Cormier’s next title defense will come in July.
Appearing on an edition of “SportsCenter” Monday night, Okamoto reported that Cormier will face Jon Jones or Jimi Manuwa. Jones will get the fight if he is ready, if not, it will go to Manuwa.
The bout will be part of UFC 214 in Anaheim on July 29.
Earlier this month, Manuwa made his presence known when he appeared Octagon-side following Cormier’s successful title defense vs. Anthony Johnson. Jones was also in attendance that night in Buffalo.
Cormier and Jones (22-1) were scheduled to meet this past July for a second time, but the former champion failed a pre-fight drug test and was removed. He has been serving a suspension since, with that suspension to end in July.
Cormier (19-1) has won four in a row, including two title defenses vs. Johnson and Alexander Gustafsson. He also bested Anderson Silva in a non-title fight at UFC 200.
Jones returned last April with a decision win over Ovince Saint Preux, claiming the interim title. He never lost the belt, as it was stripped due to outside-the-Octagon issues following his win over Cormier in 2015.
Manuwa, who was born in Sacramento but now competes out of London, is 17-2 in his career. Of those 17 wins, 15 have been via knockout for the 37-year-old, including each of his last two.
After winning his first 14 pro fights, including three in the UFC all via TKO, Manuwa was matched up with Gustafsson in 2014. He suffered a second round TKO loss, ending his run to a title shot.
