The soon-to-be 40-year old UFC heavyweight champion was angling to fight one more time, preferably against Brock Lesnar.
But then came Francis Ngannou’s 26-second knockout of Cormier’s best friend and American Kickboxing Academy training partner, two-time former champion Cain Velasquez, which went down in the main event of UFC Phoenix.
Ngannou said he wanted a title shot next in the post-fight press conference, but did not call out Cormier in the cage afterward. Cormier indicated that if Ngannou does want a fight, he’s willing to oblige.
“Every time you see something like that, the emotions tell you you go get it back, you go make it right,” an emotional Cormier said Sunday night on ESPN’s SportsCenter.