Daniel Ryan Cormier was born on March 20, 1979. He is a former professional mixed martial artist from the United States, a former amateur wrestler, and a current UFC analyst. He was once the Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight Champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Cormier is the first fighter to have championship defenses in two divisions and the second fighter in UFC history to hold titles in two weight classes at once. As an international wrestler, Cormier competed in six US World or Olympic teams, won a bronze medal at the World Championships, finished second in the World Cup, won a gold medal at the Pan American Games (bronze in 2007), and won two Pan American titles.
| Name | Daniel Ryan Cormier |
| D.O.B | March 20, 1979 |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) |
| Weight | 107 kg |
| Occupation | Wrestling, Mixed Martial Artist |
| Professional Debut | September 2009 |
| Wife | Salina Deleon |
| Nicknames | DC |
READ MORE: Jon Jones
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Cormier began wrestling in high school, where he won the Louisiana state championships and, by the time he graduated, had a 101-9 amateur record. Cormier amassed a 61-0 record while attending college and twice captured the junior college national title. Later, he transferred to Division 1 and finished 53-10. Daniel kept up his freestyle ranking after graduating from college, becoming the US National Champion from 2003 through 2008 and placing fourth in the 2004 Olympics. Then, in 2005, he took home a gold medal in the Golden Grand-Prix Ivanyarygin.
Cormier began training in MMA after quitting the 2008 Olympics, and he made his MMA debut against Gary Frazier at Strikeforce – Challengers 3 in 2009. At Strikeforce – Challengers 7, Daniel beat John Devine by third-round technical knockout (punches).
At XMMA 2, Daniel next faced Lucas Browne for the XMMA Heavyweight Championship. To become the champion, he punched Lucas in the first round. At KOTC: Imminent Danger, Cormier’s next contest for the KOTC Heavyweight Championship was against Tony Johnson. Before facing Jeff Monson in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix reserve match, he first won his following three battles. After defeating Antonio Silva, Daniel battled him again. In the Grand Prix final, he faced Josh Barnett after defeating Silva. He outclassed Barnett despite being the underdog, winning the bout by unanimous decision and the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Tournament.
At Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine, Cormier next faced Dion Staring and beat him via TKO (punches) in the second round. In 2013, Daniel departed Strikeforce to join the UFC, making this his final match in the organization.
Daniel Cormier debuted in UFC in 2013 against Frank Mir at UFC on Fox: Henderson vs. Melendez. At UFC 166, Cormier first defeated Mir by unanimous decision before prevailing over Roy Nelson by the same margin. At light heavyweight, he then beat Patrick Cummins at UFC 170 and Dan Henderson at UFC 173. After a convincing victory over Jon Jones at UFC 182, Daniel was given the opportunity to defend the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship. Despite his best efforts, Cormier was unable to defeat Jon Jones and lost the bout by a unanimous decision.
In his subsequent match against Anthony Johnson, Daniel Cormier battled once again for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship after Jon Jones had the championship revoked due to felony charges brought against him. The third-round rear-naked choke submission gave Daniel Cormier the victory and made him the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Before facing Jon Jones at UFC 214, Daniel defended his title against Alexander Gustafsson, Anderson Silva, and Anthony Johnson.
At UFC 214, Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier squared off once more in order to unify the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship. Similar to the previous fight, Jones would prevail over Cormier, out-striking the champion 95 to 60 in major strikes and taking the opening two rounds. When Jon Jones knocked out Daniel Cormier in the third round, he became the second two-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. After Jones tested positive for a turinabol metabolite, the result was changed to a No Contest, and Cormier was re-crowned the winner.
Freestyle wrestling
Folkstyle wrestling
| 26 matches | 22 wins | 3 losses |
| By knockout | 10 | 1 |
| By submission | 5 | 0 |
| By decision | 7 | 2 |
| No contests | 1 | |
