In tonight’s UFC 232, Jon Jones will be facing Alexander Gustafsson in the main event to determine the new UFC light heavyweight champion. It was determined when the fight was announced months ago that the winner would be the new champion and that Cormier would have to relinquish the light heavyweight championship. Friday, Daniel Cormier did just that, releasing in a statement to ESPN that he refuses to be stripped after doing “nothing wrong” and made the choice to relinquish the championship on his own volition. Jon Jones has weighed in on Cormier’s decision, stating that Cormier “did the right thing.” Dana White, to the contrary, considers Daniel Cormier’s actions to be a little over the top:
“I expect Cormier to be all fired up and on a rampage,” White told MMAjunkie. “He hates (Jon Jones). But at the end of the day, he wasn’t being stripped of the title. He was vacating the title. It would never go down in history that he was stripped. ‘I’m gonna get stripped and I didn’t do anything wrong.’ I told DC a long time ago, if you’re my champion for the rest of my career, I’m good with that. He’s one of the greatest athletes I’ve ever worked with, such a good guy. He’s being a little dramatic right now. He’s being a little dramatic because of his hatred for Jon Jones. And he would have never been stripped. He’s vacating.”
Daniel Cormier may have an opportunity to regain the light heavyweight championship if he so chooses, but that may be contingent on whether or not his targeted bout with Brock Lesnar is ever finalized and if he will stick to his March 2019 retirement plans.
Do you agree with Dana White? Is Daniel Cormier being dramatic in his choice to relinquish the light heavyweight championship in the manner that he did?
