Daniel Cormier’s Surprising Pick for Hardest Hitter He Faced in UFC

UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier was brutally honest when asked to name the fighter who had hit him the hardest in his career – even though it meant giving credit to one of his biggest rivals. ‘DC’ was participating in a Q & A session ahead of UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia, leading a panel that included Charles Oliveria, Alexander Vokanovski, Tai Tuivasa and Jack Della Maddalena.

Asked by a fan to name the UFC fighter that had rocked him the most, Cormier reasoned: “Well, I’ve only been knocked out once!” His sole official knockout loss came at the hands of Stipe Miocic in 2019. However, he was also stopped by long-time nemesis Jon Jones via head kick in 2014. That bout was later overturned to a no contest after ‘Bones’ failed a drugs test.

A giggling Tuivasa immediately knew that Cormier was about to name Jones and struggled to keep his composure as a result. Years after they last shared the Octagon, Cormier still has an intense dislike for Jones as a person – although he has previously acknowledged how great Jones was as a fighter.

Daniel Cormier Admits That Jon Jones Knocking Him Out was the Hardest he was Hit in the UFC

The result was later overturned – but the scars still remain for Cormier

In giving his answer, Cormier stated:

The rivalry between Cormier and Jones is one of the most notable in UFC history. The former two-weight UFC champion stated that he could not envision himself training alongside Jon Jones, in the same way that some former rivals, such as Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker, have in the past. He explained that he prefers his rivalries to last, and does need a ‘fuzzy feeling’, noting that he would have been fine if Evander Holyfield never forgave Mike Tyson for biting his ear.

Cormier explained his perspective, arguing that Adesanya and Whittaker’s rivalry was different from his feud with Jones because the two were simply competing for the same thing [the UFC Middleweight Championship]. Once the belt was no longer at stake, their rivalry died down. Cormier simply can’t see the same thing happening with himself and Jones.

Other fighters on the panel also shared their experiences with hard-hitting opponents. Charles Oliveria named Dustin Poirier, Justin Gaethje, and Michael Chandler before declaring that he was the hardest hitter in the lightweight division.

Tai Tuivasa named his father and Sergei Pavlovich as the hardest hitters that he had faced, while Alexander Volkanovski named Ilia Topuria. Jack Della Maddalena then cited Gilbert Burns as his hardest-hitting opponent.

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