This may come as a surprise, but this could very well be the UFC's next big star. Cormier is in that mold of being no-nonsense in the octagon, but charismatic outside of it. Despite not having the most crowd pleasing style, he knows how to push someone's buttons. He didn't back down from Roy Nelson's antics and repeatedly called out Frank Mir for his habit of quitting. Those were reasonable claims, which had more fans start to get behind him. It also helped that he overpowered fan favorite and well-respected Josh Barnett in a five round battle. That fight was a testament of how good Cormier is. Some fans haven't exactly "embraced the grind" yet, due to his lack of finishes. His fighting style is mostly wrestling based. That doesn't take away Cormier's popularity in repeatedly calling out Jon Jones, who is becoming more of a villain. Then he has become one of the main analysts on Fox Sports 1 that has helped fans get to know him even more. We haven't seen his monumental moment in the UFC yet, because of the lack of great match-ups at both heavyweight and light heavyweight. We'll have to wait until he fights Jones or even Alexander Gustafsson for that matter. While he may be already 35 years old, people have started to embrace Cormier's grind and persona. He never sugarcoats his analysis and has proven to be likable.
I cover the sport of MMA, along with being a fan of the sport since 2008. I've been covering the sport for two years now, along with interviewing several fighters. I also write on MMASucka.com. You can follow me on twitter @Allen_Strk or email at AStrk19@gmail.com
