All eyes are on Daniel Cormier.
The American Kickboxing Academy prodigy known as “DC” defeated Josh Barnett on Saturday night to keep his unbeaten streak alive and win the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix.
In many ways, Cormier’s rise to prominence is comparable to that of UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
After Alistair Overeem was released from Strikeforce, Cormier was given an opportunity to step in as an alternate in the Strikeforce Grand Prix, despite only having eight professional fights under his belt.
Unlike Jones, Cormier wasn’t offered bouts against guys like Stephan Bonnar, Brandon Vera and Vladimir Matyushenko to prepare for top-10 opposition.
It was sink or swim for the former U.S. Olympian, who was tossed to the upper-echelon sharks after a pair of Strikeforce victories over Devin Cole and Jeff Monson.
Cormier’s ascension isn’t just as impressive as Jones’, but it wouldn’t be far-fetched to say it surpasses it in some ways.
While Jones showed minor growing pains in earlier bouts, Cormier’s entire journey has been smooth sailing. Like Jones, he hasn’t really shown any holes in his game.
This isn’t suggesting Cormier possesses the same all-around talent as Jones, who is arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world. There’s still much for the Louisiana native to prove, and it all starts with inking a deal with the UFC.
As cliché as it sounds, the sky truly is the limit for Cormier—an Olympic level wrestler with tremendous standup skills.
Will he follow in Jones’ footsteps and become a UFC champion?
Regardless, Cormier’s days of being a blip on the radar are over.
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