Cormier Addresses Gustafsson After UFC 227 Withdrawal: ‘You and I Won’t Share the Octagon Again’

Daniel Cormier doesn’t like the way Alexander Gustafsson is handling business these days, and he let his former foe know about it in a lengthy social media post on Sunday.

“Dear Alex, I don’t know what happened to you going back to the Rockhold situation. You have always been a standup guy but your behavior changed,” Cormier wrote. “From calling a guy out the day after he got knocked out, to now offering to fight me knowing I have a broken hand, after Volkan couldn’t go. Now you’ve turned down Jan [Blachowicz], turned down Khalil [Rountree] all while calling for a heavyweight title fight. Now, moments after Anthony Smith does his work like an animal you decide you’re hurt.

“Man, I respect you as a fighter. I will always be grateful for October 2015, but you and I won’t share the octagon again. I am disappointed in who you’ve become. You are so entitled, man, I can’t deal with delusional people. Good luck recovering. Our time has passed. See you from the commentary table.”

Gustafsson’s management announced his withdrawal from UFC 227 on Sunday. Earlier, Smith stopped Mauricio Rua in the opening stanza at UFC Fight Night 134 main event and called out Gustafsson, not knowing the Swede was injured.

While Gustafsson’s team claimed the fighter’s exit was due to an undisclosed “minor injury,” it’s clear that Cormier believes there are other factors in play. Cormier defeated Gustafsson via split decision at UFC 192 to retain his light heavyweight title, and “The Mauler” has been vocal in calling for a rematch recently.

Cormier, meanwhile, recently became a two-division champ with a win over then heavyweight titlist Stipe Miocic at UFC 226. “DC” has said he would like to fight twice before retiring in March 2019, and one of those bouts will likely be a heavyweight belt defense against Brock Lesnar.

Dear Alex, I don’t know what happened to you going back to the Rockhold situation. You have always been a stand up guy but your behavior changed. From calling a guy out the day after he got knocked out, to now offering to fight me knowing I have a broken hand, after Volkan couldn’t go. Now you’ve turned down Jan, turned down Khalil all while calling for a heavyweight title fight. Now, moments after Anthony Smith does his work like an animal you decide you’re hurt. Man, I respect you as a fighter. I will always be grateful for October 2015, but you and I won’t share the octagon again. I am disappointed in who you’ve become. You are so entitled, man, I can’t deal with delusional people. Good luck recovering. Our time has passed. See you from the commentary table. DC @alexthemauler #wegoourseparateways

A post shared by Daniel "DC" Cormier (@dc_mma) on Jul 22, 2018 at 5:12pm PDT