Daniel Cormier On Whether UFC 226 Altercation With Brock Lesnar Was Planned
After defeating Stipe Miocic to win the UFC Heavyweight Championship, Daniel Cormier became a dual champion, as he also holds the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship. Following the match, Cormier drew media attention everywhere, calling out Brock Lesnar who was in attendance at the show. Lesnar came into the Octagon, and pursued a faceoff with Cormier, forcefully shoving him during their confrontation. This has led to much speculation that a Cormier vs. Lesnar fight will occur at the beginning of 2019, when Lesnar is eligible to fight in the Octagon again.
Cormier talked to Steve Austin about his confrontation with Lesnar, and whether it was planned.
"I think Brock, who picked Stipe [Miocic] before the fight, Brock picked Stipe before the fight," said Cormier. "You and I know from being around Brock Lesnar, when Brock Lesnar shows up, most times he's looking for a fight, right? He ain't just coming to watch the UFC. He's coming to look for a fight. So when I'm in the Octagon, my music just got done playing [and] I'm in a very unfamiliar place because normally you don't get to stand there and wait for your opponent. But Stipe's the baddest man on the planet, Stipe's the heavyweight champion, so I go first.
"And as I'm standing in the blue corner, I'm like pacing back and forth, and I look through the Octagon, and Brock Lesnar is just staring at me. But he's smirking, right? Like, I'm trying to ignore Brock because I'm like, okay, obviously I've got some things [that are] really important on my plate right now and I don't have time to be worried about Brock smirking at me and sh*t right now. So I look over there and he's standing there and kind of like looking at me like, you know [if] you get this done, it's go time. After the fight, I was like, get in here. You're here for a fight, we'll give you a fight."
Cormier added that he did not remember how big Brock is until he got in the Octagon, and the shove he got from Brock actually surprised him. He called him out because he felt that the fight ? which was bound to happen ? would have a good visual by them facing off. If he knew that Brock was going to push him, he "would have dug his feet in" so it didn't look as bad as it was.
If any portion of these quotes are used, please be sure to credit The Steve Austin Show with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
Source: The Steve Austin Show