The Film Room: Daniel Cormier

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UFC 230 is now available on Amazon Prime.

Daniel Cormier will defend the undisputed Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight title for the first time when he takes on Derrick Lewis in the UFC 230 headliner this Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York. “DC” took the championship from Stipe Miocic four months ago and now aims to solidify his place as one of the greatest fighters of all-time in the eighth title fight of his five-year UFC career.

Cormier has lived by the “King of the Grind” motto since he wrestled collegiately at Oklahoma State University and went on to become a two-time Olympian. He made his professional MMA debut in 2009. This installment of The Film Room puts his exploits under the microscope.



What does not get talked about enough with Cormier is the fact that he did not start his MMA career until he was 30 years old. Just nine years later, he has put himself in the Greatest of All-Time conversation. To put it all in perspective, American Kickboxing Academy teammate and current lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov just turned 30 in September and started his career a year before Cormier. “DC” entered the UFC as one of the most decorated wrestlers to ever compete in the sport, and only one man in MMA has managed to defend his takedowns and negate his grappling prowess. Although he often likes to stand and trade with opponents, Cormier knows he can rely on his grappling when the going gets tough.



As a short and stocky fighter, “DC” knew he had to develop his inside boxing to compete with the long and rangy strikers of the light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions. To negate the opponent’s reach advantage, Cormier became adept at leaping forward with a lead hook and using the same hand to grab a single-collar tie to initiate the clinch. Inside boxing and dirty boxing from the clinch is a lost art in MMA, but Cormier has perfected it for use inside the Octagon.



Once in the clinch, Cormier will either keep the single-collar tie and fire off uppercuts with his right hand or use it to transition to double underhooks and look for a takedown. Something to note about his clinch game is his incredible strength with the single-collar tie. In most of these moments, it looks like the opponents could simply back up and break the grip, but Cormier’s undeniable strength forces them to exchange in the clinch, where “DC” is most comfortable on the feet. Cormier went five rounds with two of the best distance strikers in MMA but still managed to routinely grab the clinch and fire off uppercuts, all while taking away their length advantage and forcing them to fight in his wheelhouse. He did this by constantly pressuring opponents to the cage and throwing filler lead hands, forcing the opponent to either exchange with him in the pocket or continue circling along the fence.



If Cormier cannot achieve the clinch and is forced to strike at distance, he does possess a beautiful overhand right that he sets up in a variety of ways. With the threat of the clinch and the single-collar tie, Cormier can feint his lead hand as if he were initiating the clinch before throwing a right hand over the top. Since Cormier is known for his clinch, opponents will often bite on this lead-hand feint, which allows him to sneak in the overhand right. In his most recent fight with Miocic, Cormier seemed to favor a newly developed snapping counter jab, as he used it to stop the Strong Style Fight Team rep’s forward movement and aggressive leading combos.

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