Daniel Cormier Fighter Profile
- Age: 45
- Weight Classes: Light Heavyweight & Heavyweight
- Country of Birth: USA
- Pro MMA Record: 22-3-0
- Knockout Wins: 8
- Submission Wins: 7
- Nickname: DC
- Championship’s Won: Light Heavyweight & Heavyweight
- Team: American Kickboxing Academy
- Career Earnings Estimate: $12,526,833
Daniel Cormier graduated from Oklahoma State University and held a reputation as one of the most feared wrestlers from the Sooner State. Still, the UFC success story he’s known for today—often featured on the best UFC betting sites—has some heartbreaking moments, and said success didn’t surface without its trials and tribulations.
DC is a bonified UFC legend. Behind an 11-year professional MMA career came legendary rivalries, championship victories across two weight classes, and multiple defenses of the 205-lb strap. Therefore, it only makes sense that we look back on the life and times of DC in today’s article. From struggles to glory, from wrestling to mixed martial arts, let’s get into it.
Daniel Cormier: The Mistake That Made a Legend
The boisterous, comical, and outgoing personality currently sits behind the commentary booth at most UFC events doesn’t reveal the painful backstory that brought Daniel Cormier to the legendary status he owns today.
Cormier, aged 7, dealt with the murder of his father, then in 2003, his 3-month-old daughter died in a tragic car accident. Later, in 2008, he almost died from kidney failure from attempting to gain weight at the Olympics.
From the lowest of lows to the highs of MMA superstardom, Cormier’s backstory is a testament to his mental fortitude and desire to succeed. However, one mistake during the 2008 Beijing Olympics may have steered his attention to competitive mixed martial arts.
DC snuck through the Olympic Village, attempting to avoid his teammates and coaches while hoping to catch the shuttle bus to the airport. At all costs, he aimed to elude conversations about his painstaking weight cut, which resulted in his kidney failing. He was America’s best hope to collect a medal and was the team’s captain, but after four days in the hospital and a removal from the Olympics, he felt like he’d let his country down.
Fourteen years after that fateful day, Cormier was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame (Modern Wing 2022), and it could be argued that without his Olympic weight-cutting complications, he may never have graced the UFC octagon.
Daniel Cormier: Olympic Wrestler to UFC Legend
Evolution was awaiting, and Cormier went from being an Olympic outcast to an MMA standout performer. He could have accepted his job at a local television station. Still, much like his wrestling credentials that took him out of Lafayette, Louisiana, to the Olympics, he used that elite wrestling background to assist him in dominating the pro-MMA landscape.
DC discovered the American Kickboxing Academy MMA gym via a fellow wrestler-turned-fight, and the rest was history. As an All-American wrestler from Oklahoma State who effortlessly won medals in every wrestling competition imaginable while also competing at the Olympics, his athletic and combat experience made the transition to pro-MMA much simpler.
Despite finding caged combat at the age of 30, he didn’t compete like a wrestler with instability elsewhere; his performances gave the impression of a polished veteran who’d been involved with MMA since childhood. Within two years, he’s won nine straight fights (4 KOs, 3 submissions) before collecting two regional scene heavyweight titles with KOTC and XMMA.
By 2010, MMA fans and critics alike knew we had something special when DC battered two opponents via strikes in consecutive bouts, proving he was much more than a wrestler. A short example of Cormier’s already abbreviated fighting career can be seen during his 2011 Strikeforce run, as he became the promotions heavyweight Grand Prix champion and held a 10-0-0 record before the promotion merged with the UFC.
Daniel Cormier: Two-Division UFC Champion
In what can be regarded as a short pro-MMA career compared to some legends, Cormier will be known as one of the greatest fighters in UFC history. Six years ago, he became the second fighter to collect championships in two divisions simultaneously when knocking out Stipe Miocic. He notably defended the heavyweight strap while also holding the light heavyweight belt.
One of the most noteworthy aspects about Cormier, however, is that he believed and persevered whenever faced with adversity, and let’s be honest, his life achievements were also met with countless moments of heavy-heartedness and sorrow.
One of the most damaging blows undoubtedly involved his feud with Jon Jones, as a rematch two years in the making—heavily anticipated by top sportsbooks—was met with a KO loss, which later resulted in a no-contest due to Jones’ PED misconduct. The post-fight tears and the actual knockout provided mems that still outweighed the Jones drug allegations, and it was another heartbreak he dealt with.
Naturally, it didn’t keep the former Olympian down, and he continued defending the light heavyweight belt, which was handed back to him after the Jones no-contest and would eventually make history versus Miocic. Unfortunately, while he didn’t allow Jones to put a stamp on his career, a trilogy with Miocic did.
The combative career of a man whose backstory involved so many twists and turns and so many disappointments that saw him turn his heartache into striving for greatness sadly had to end on one of those sorrows.
It isn’t over yet; DC’s story has more chapters that require completion. His position as a TV broadcaster with the UFC and his ongoing personality in the sport continue shaping and inspiring today’s up-and-coming talent. Although his career didn’t go the way he’d hoped, he should unquestionably be proud of his accomplishments.
It’s a poetic injustice that DC retired on back-to-back losses after weighing up his combat sports tenure, but either way, he’s guaranteed a place amongst MMA legends. He will forever be remembered as one of the greatest fighters ever to step foot in the Octagon.
Daniel Cormier Mixed Martial Arts Accomplishments
The Ultimate Fighting Championship
- UFC Hall of Fame (Modern Wing 2022)
- UFC Heavyweight Champion (One time, one defense)
- UFC Light Heavyweight Champion (One time, three defenses)
- UFC Post-Fight Bonuses (Five)
- First UFC fighter to successfully defend championships in two divisions
- Second simultaneous multi-division UFC champion (LW & HW)
- Fifth multi-division champion in UFC history
Strikeforce
- Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion
King of the Cage
- KOTC Heavyweight Champion (One time)
Xtreme MMA
- XMMA Heavyweight Champion (One time, one defense)
Freestyle & Folkstyle Wrestling
- Six-time US World or Olympic Team Member
- 2007 Wrestling World Championship (Bronze)
- 2007 Pan American Games (Bronze)
- 2003 Pan American Games (Gold)
- 2002 Pan American Games (Gold)
- USA Senior National Championship (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008)
- NCAA Div I 184lb Runner Up (2001)
- NCAA Div I All-American
- LHSAA Hall of Fame Inductee
- Plus, many, many more!
