“There are a lot of good fighters at American Kickboxing Academy—and it's been one of the top gyms in MMA for a long time. The fighters at AKA operate with a team mentality, and my time spent there has been great. Some of the best fighters in the sport, not to mention some of the best wrestlers, are there; and they go hard when they train. I’ve known DC (Daniel Cormier) since high school. He’s always loved the sport of wrestling, and he still does. He can teach, and he runs an awesome practice. It’s a hard practice session, and so we don't call him Daniel Cormier, we call him Daniel Gable -- because he runs such a monster practice.” - Gray Maynard Interview.
It has been said that sometimes it's far better to be born 'lucky,' rather than 'rich.'
Strikeforce promotion's best Heavyweight prospect, the 33 year-old Lafayette, Louisiana's Daniel Cormier—currently undefeated at (9-0) —was originally a Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament alternate.
At first, Cormier's undefeated resume included nobody-worth mentioning—until emerging victorious over Jeff Monson in a Strikeforce June 2011 Heavyweight Grand Prix Reserve bout.
This is when the Cajun U.S. Olympic Wrestler, Cormier, received a huge stroke of luck.
Alistair Overeem was moving on to bigger and better things, leaving his opponent Antonio 'Bigfoot' Silva with no opponent.
Enter Cormier.
Last September, 2011, in a thrilling turn of events, Cormier knocked-out Bigfoot-Silva—the same man who had pulverized Fedor Emelianenko until the overrated Russian was nearly comatose.
In doing so—in the very first round no-less, Cormier captured a spot in the finals; scheduled for this coming May 19th at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, CA.
Now, depending on who you ask, Cormier is about to receive, arguably, his toughest-test so far.
'DC' will face-off against fellow-finalist and former UFC champion, Josh Barnett, to determine the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion.
Here's a look back at the classic fight that got him there.
Stay Tuned.
