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FIGHT ODDS

Daniel Cormier Vows to Return to Defend Light Heavyweight Belt In UFC Moncton Promo

Tristen CritchfieldOct 28, 2018


Perhaps it’s not wise to read too much into a promo, but Daniel Cormier certainly provided some food for thought on Saturday night.

Leading into the UFC Fight Night Moncton broadcast, Cormier ended a video hyping the evening’s main event between Volkan Oezdemir and Anthony Smith with a stern warning for the light heavyweight division:

“I don’t care about Jon Jones and Alexander Gustafsson,” Cormier said. “Tonight’s your [Oezdemir and Smith] night, sure. But trust me when I say this: I’ll be back to defend my light heavyweight championship.”

Ultimately, it was Smith who established himself as a contender with a third-round submission of Oezdemir for his third consecutive triumph at 205 pounds. Cormier already owns a victory over Oezdemir via second-round TKO at UFC 220 in January.

Cormier is slated to return to the Octagon to defend his heavyweight crown against Derrick Lewis at UFC 230 next weekend. Depending on the result of that bout, “DC” is expected to square off with former heavyweight king and WWE star Brock Lesnar early in 2019.

However, those plans dictate that Cormier would have to relinquish the 205-pound title, and the promotion recently announced that Jon Jones and Alexander Gustafsson would square off for the vacant light heavyweight championship in the UFC 232 main event on Dec. 29.

Cormier didn’t offer any clarification on his quote, but he was pleased by the appearance of his wrestling students — one of which is his son — in the promo.