Daniel Cormier insists he didn’t even know he was holding the towel when he weighed in the second time for his UFC 210 win over Anthony Johnson at UFC 210 last Saturday (April 8, 2017) from Buffalo, but “Rumble’s” team isn’t buying it. Just as Cormier was downplaying the controversy where he lost 1.2 pounds
Daniel Cormier insists he didn’t even know he was holding the towel when he weighed in the second time for his UFC 210 win over Anthony Johnson at UFC 210 last Saturday (April 8, 2017) from Buffalo, but “Rumble’s” team isn’t buying it.
Just as Cormier was downplaying the controversy where he lost 1.2 pounds in a shocking two-and-a-half minutes last Friday to Ariel Helwani, Johnson’s manager Ali Abdelaziz was telling ESPN that they will file a formal complaint about the incident:
“Anthony’s rights were violated. We will go through the proper legal channels to fix this. Everybody saw what happened. How do you lose 1.2 pounds in two minutes?”
According to Abdelaziz, Johnson deserves 20 percent of Cormier’s purse because while he may have made weight in the two extra hours allowed to him in New York, it did not appear that he did in such a short amount of time:
“We don’t want to take anything away from [Cormier], he earned that win,” Abdelaziz said. “But [Cormier] needs to give up 20 percent of his purse to Anthony. He had two extra hours to cut the weight and I think he probably would have made it — but as it happened, I don’t think he made weight.”
And even though Johnson retired after the second loss to Cormier, his manager is steadfast in that the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC), which just began regulating MMA events last year, does not deserve a pass for allowing it to happen and would consider a lawsuit to seek justice for his client:
“Whatever it takes. I understand New York is new to regulating mixed martial arts, but they’ve been doing boxing for a long time. Everybody is trying to sweep this under the rug but it’s not going to happen.”
UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier may have secured his second title defense with a second-round submission over Anthony Johnson in the main event of last Saturday’s (April 8, 2017) UFC 210 from the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York, but first, he had to deal with some controversy. That controversy came at last Friday’s early
UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier may have secured his second title defense with a second-round submission over Anthony Johnson in the main event of last Saturday’s (April 8, 2017) UFC 210 from the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York, but first, he had to deal with some controversy.
That controversy came at last Friday’s early weigh-ins, where Cormier missed the division’s 205-pound title fight limit on his first attempt by weighing in at 206.2 pounds. He then returned roughly two-and-a-half minutes later to weigh in at 205 pounds, but several onlookers accused him of cheating the system with an old wrestling trick and holding onto the towel that hid his naked body while weighing in.
However, the champ insists he didn’t even know he was doing that, telling Ariel Helwani on today’s episode of ‘The MMA Hour’ that he was simply exhausted from the “hardest weight cut of his career”:
“When I got off the scale the first time, I walked away, and they didn’t cover me,” Cormier said. “So obviously, a guy thinks that he’s losing everything that he’s worked for on the scale, and we just walk back off the scale and nobody even worried about protecting me. So I was like, you know what, I’m going to hold the towel a little bit myself to make sure that I’m covered.
“Now, the reality is, I didn’t even realize I was doing that until I saw pictures, honestly. I’ve got to be completely honest with you, I didn’t even realize I was doing that. I was tired. I was very discouraged and upset because of after that had just happened, so I didn’t even realize that I was doing it.”
Cormier went on to describe issues that not only he and his team but also Johnson’s team experienced with weight management before the pivotal championship bout. The champ revealed Johnson’s coach said their fighter had worked out extensively and hardly lost an weight according to the scale, yet he ultimately came in at an odd number of 203.8 pounds, 1.2 pounds under the title fight limit.
What makes it significant is that Cormier was over by that exact amount, leading to speculation that the scale had some sort of issue involving the 1.2 pound amount. The champion made sure to let his fans (and his haters) know he wasn’t the only one with a close call at UFC 210:
“Honestly, man, my team was standing with Anthony’s team in the back and they spoke to a couple of his coaches, and they said he been working out and not losing weight,” Cormier said. “They said that ‘Rumble’ had worked out for like an hour-and-a-half and lost .8 pounds, and they were thinking, ‘this dude ain’t going to make weight either.’ Then he goes in and he’s the exact amount of weight under as I was the second time I stepped on the scale.
“So I don’t know what was happening with that scale, but yeah, they were concerned that he wasn’t going to (make it). He said it himself. He’s like, ‘man, I was in the same situation as you,’ so obviously we both had some issues with our scales, or the commission had a scale issue. I don’t know.”
Well, who the hell saw that coming? In one of the more baffling performances I’ve had the pleasure of seeing, Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson decided to implement an interesting game plan in his rematch with Daniel Cormier at UFC 210. Directly after losing in the exact same sequence of movements, Johnson did the unexpected and retired from the sport at the height of his powers. And he wasn’t the only fighter to call it a career. Let’s delve into the fallout of UFC 210.
Well, who the hell saw that coming? In one of the more baffling performances I’ve had the pleasure of seeing, Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson decided to implement an interesting game plan in his rematch with Daniel Cormier at UFC 210. Directly after losing in the exact same sequence of movements, Johnson did the unexpected and retired from the sport at the height of his powers. And he wasn’t the only fighter to call it a career. Let’s delve into the fallout of UFC 210.
Patrick Cote decided to retire after giving a decent showing against Thiago Alves. Rather than focus on the performance itself, I thought I’d speak on what I believe Cote has left behind in his wake. Patrick Cote was one of those warriors from a bygone era where boxing and takedown defense made you an elite competitor. Along with Georges St-Pierre, David Loiseau and a handful of others, Cote put Canada on the map. Cote not only evolved with the sport when it was necessary, he proved himself to be a tough out even at the very end. While he may not get the kind of send off other more successful fighters will receive, I’m here to say that Patrick Cote was certainly one of the most entertaining fighters out there that always put on a show and put it on the line. Damn it, now I’m getting all misty.
Back to the violence…
The most entertaining fight on the main card was swiftly followed by the most disappointing. Pearl Gonzalez battled Cynthia Calvillo in a pretty entertaining scrap. Calvillo opened strong with a ton of offense, though Gonzalez did show some good defense with an interesting opened handed right shield which prevented some significant damage on the feet. Once the fight hit the ground however, Calvillo showed once again why she’s such a problem in the grappling arena. A rear naked choke would eventually materialize in the third round. Calvillo is now has two victories in as many appearances and for whatever reason people are already wanting to match her up with strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk. No. Just, no. While Calvillo is certainly talented, she has a ways to go before she’s ready for the champ. Angela Hill should be a nice challenge to see exactly where she’s at.
Chris Weidman and Gegard Mousasi had a pretty entertaining match. That is until the middle of the second frame which saw Mousasi land a knee to Weidman’s head that was potentially illegal. The match would eventually end with Mousasi getting his hand raised but with no real definitive winner. Weidman’s approach of footwork, kicks, and feints masked his takedowns rather well (something I’ll definitely touch upon in another article). Mousasi was effective in the second round rattling off hand combinations that hurt the former champion. A rematch would be the fair thing to do, but during this new era of MMA it’s all about what sells, not necessarily what makes sense.
Last, but not least, Anthony Johnson decided that he’d rather wrestle with the superior wrestler rather than keep the fight at striking distance as he faced off against Daniel Cormier. It was an interesting approach that perhaps could have worked had he used the strategy to through off Cormier throughout the round. Instead, ‘Rumble’ stuck to his guns and kept being fought off. He did land some heat towards the end of the first frame which broke the champ’s nose. It was in the second frame that we saw Johnson wilt as he was taken down by the same single leg-inside trip that he succumbed to the first time he face Cormier. From there it was all de ja vu as Cormier secured the back and sunk in the rear naked choke.
Despite the performance, Anthony Johnson was still able to retire with a level of eloquence and dignity. His retirement was far more surprising than Patrick Cote’s own, especially when you consider that Johnson is still in his prime. Many are trying to suggest that we haven’t seen the last of Anthony Johnson, but in reality I hope it is. A fighter knows when they’re done and if ‘Rumble’ lacks the motivation then what’s the point of getting in their and potentially injuring himself. If his head isn’t in the game then he’s just putting himself in danger. Yeah, he puts himself in danger for a living, but it’s a whole different ball game when you just don’t want to be there anymore.
For my part, I’m thanking Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson for the memories. As far as competition goes, he will be missed.
Do you think Anthony Johnson should have retired?
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
When Anthony Johnson called for his coach Henri Hooft to join him inside the Octagon, he was nowhere to be found. “Rumble” announced his retirement from the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA) after being submitted by Daniel Cormier in the main event of UFC 210. It was Johnson’s second attempt at Ultimate Fighting Championship […]
When Anthony Johnson called for his coach Henri Hooft to join him inside the Octagon, he was nowhere to be found. “Rumble” announced his retirement from the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA) after being submitted by Daniel Cormier in the main event of UFC 210. It was Johnson’s second attempt at Ultimate Fighting Championship […]
UFC light-heavyweight contender Anthony “Rumble” Johnson is looking forward to being him and not just known as a UFC star. Following his loss to Daniel Cormier for the UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 210, Johnson dropped a bit of a bombshell and announced his retirement. It was his second title loss to Cormier, who
UFC light-heavyweight contender Anthony “Rumble” Johnson is looking forward to being him and not just known as a UFC star. Following his loss to Daniel Cormier for the UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 210, Johnson dropped a bit of a bombshell and announced his retirement. It was his second title loss to Cormier, who also beat “Rumble” in 2015, and it ended Johnson’s three-fight winning streak.
Johnson recently took to his Instagram account to send a farewell message to his fans. He wrote the following:
“Hello, Monday! A new beginning starts today, and I am so happy about that… My body can recover and I can focus on something different other than mma. MY life has been amazing and I haven’t come close to scratching the surface. I’ll miss mma and every aspect of the game, but my time is over and I’m ready to watch tbd new generation take over. Now I can be Anthony Johnson/AJ and not Anthony Rumble Johnson! Thank you all for the love and support throughout the yrs… Rumble Squad forever! #RumbleSquad The End of Rumble.”
A post shared by Anthony Johnson (@anthony_rumble) on
It should be noted that although he announced his retirement from MMA, Johnson did leave open the door for a potential future fight with ex-champ Jon Jones. Their paths never crossed in the UFC.
Anthony Johnson has retired from mixed martial arts (MMA), but a fight with Jon Jones would intrigue him if he were to make a comeback. Following another submission loss to Daniel Cormier for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) light heavyweight title, Johnson announced his retirement from the sport. The news came as a shock to […]
Anthony Johnson has retired from mixed martial arts (MMA), but a fight with Jon Jones would intrigue him if he were to make a comeback. Following another submission loss to Daniel Cormier for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) light heavyweight title, Johnson announced his retirement from the sport. The news came as a shock to […]
