Daniel Cormier Ready to Take Over UFC Matchmaking Duties, Fantasy Books Bantamweight Top 10
Sit back Sean Shelby, Daniel Cormier has got this.
The UFC’s bantamweight division is perhaps the most stacked weight class in all of mixed martial arts, boasting a slew of former and future world champions like Sean O’Malley, Petr Yan, Deiveson Figueiredo, Henry Cejudo, and Umar Nurmagomedov.
Then there’s 135-pound titleholder Merab Dvalishvili who’s coming off a stellar performance against ‘Sugar’ at UFC 306 in Las Vegas.
Riding an 11-fight win streak dating back to 2018, ‘The Machine’ will look to keep his unbeaten run alive when he inevitably locks up with the No. 2 ranked Nurmagomedov in 2025.
But what about the rest of the division?
Cormier Reveals his bantamweight wishlist
Following Petr Yan’s impressive win over Figueiredo in Macau, there are a lot of intriguing matchups to be had at 135. Doing the UFC’s job for them, Cormier broke down what he believes are the bantamweight matches that the promotion should be booking for the new year.
“There is a bunch of guys at 135 that need to be matched up. So I figured, it’s time for some matchmaking,” Cormier said on his ESPN show Good Guy/Bad Guy with Chael Sonnen. “For the title…easy, Merab vs. Umar. … Then I go Yan vs. Sandhagen (2) as my second fight, Chael. Because then it gives you a clear number one contender.
“Sean O’Malley needs a big fight, right? You know who else needs a big fight? Henry Cejudo. These guys have a beef, an easy beef to sell…I say put Sean O’Malley in there with the former champion Henry Cejudo. That means more than a win over Cory Sandhagen,” Cormier continued. “After that, I’m going Figgy (Deiveson Figueiredo) vs. Dominick Cruz. And my last one, Chael, we’ve got to give Mario Bautista a chance. … I’m giving him (Marlon) ‘Chito’ Vera” (h/t MMA News).
Chances are, Sean O’Malley will walk straight into a title fight once he’s ready to return following the loss against Dvalishvili in Vegas.
Also, Yan seems to think that his win over Figueiredo has already made him worthy of a rematch with ‘The Machine,’ as evidenced by his recent post on social media responding to the reigning champ’s praise.
Dvalishvili seemed to like the idea, even going so far as to offer ‘No Mercy’ an exact date for their potential rematch.
“Great fight Petr (Yan),” Dvalishvili said in a video posted on X. “I like your callout, and I like your respect. Let’s go again, after 2 years. March 8th, T Mobile. Let’s f*cking go.”
What bantamweight matchups would you like to see in the coming year?
