Light Heavyweight

Daniel Cormier

UFC 2013–present · rated in 3 editions · peak overall 94.0

Scouting report

Daniel Cormier competed at the Olympic level in wrestling before spending years as AKA's heavyweight training partner ahead of his move to light heavyweight. He defeated Anthony Johnson twice and Alexander Gustafsson once, his clinch entries and hip-level control reflected in an 85 Wrestling rating. Born in Lafayette, Louisiana, "DC" fought Jon Jones twice for the championship (plus one bout overturned to a no-contest), the pair's rivalry defining the division's title picture through the mid-2010s.

Peak ratings

Boxing90
Kickboxing78
Wrestling97
BJJ86
Strength92
Durability93
Cardio92
Fight IQ96

By edition

2014–2015Overall 92
Boxing88
Kickboxing76
Wrestling97
BJJ85
Strength91
Durability93
Cardio92
Fight IQ94

Upon dropping to light heavyweight in 2014, Cormier dominated Patrick Cummins and Dan Henderson with slams, before capturing the vacant UFC Light Heavyweight Championship at UFC 187 in May 2015 by submitting Anthony Johnson with a rear-naked choke, then defending the belt in a five-round fight against Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 192. His Olympic wrestling and clinch dirty boxing are reflected in an 97 Wrestling and 94 Fight IQ.

2016–2017Overall 92
Boxing89
Kickboxing78
Wrestling97
BJJ86
Strength91
Durability93
Cardio92
Fight IQ95

Cormier defeated Anderson Silva at UFC 200 and submitted Anthony Johnson with a second-round rear-naked choke in their UFC 210 rematch in Buffalo, before battling Jon Jones at UFC 214 in Anaheim in a championship contest that was later overturned to a no-contest. His top pressure, high single legs, and championship cardio anchor his 97 Wrestling and 92 Cardio.

2018–2019Overall 94
Boxing90
Kickboxing78
Wrestling97
BJJ86
Strength92
Durability93
Cardio92
Fight IQ96

In January 2018 at UFC 220 in Boston, Cormier dominated top contender Volkan Oezdemir with a second-round ground-and-pound TKO, before moving up to heavyweight to knock out Stipe Miocic at UFC 226 and become a simultaneous two-division UFC champion. His wrestling execution and dirty boxing maintain his 97 Wrestling and 96 Fight IQ.

Draft Daniel Cormier into your build

Daniel Cormier enters the pool on any spin landing on light heavyweight between 2014 and 2019. Spin, draft eight attributes, then simulate 25 fights.

Ratings shown are our own, built from independent research and from how Daniel Cormier is regarded by the MMA community, with the EA Sports UFC games used only as a starting baseline for the scale. They are unofficial and do not constitute an assessment of Daniel Cormier's real-world abilities. See the disclaimer below.