- Daniel Cormier expressed his dismay over Dustin Poirier hinting at possible retirement after UFC 302
- DC thinks talking about retirement ahead of a fight could only create distractions
Daniel Cormier doesn’t like hearing Dustin Poirier talk about possibly retiring after facing Islam Makhachev at UFC 302.
DC is not a fan of retirement announcements
Speaking on his YouTube channel, DC shared his real thoughts on fighters hinting at the end of their career while still competing. For Cormier, “The Diamond” should stop calling his title fight with Makhachev possibly his last.
“I can’t stand hearing that it’s almost over for a guy that we all universally love and enjoy when he’s inside the octagon.” “I also hate it for another reason. I hate it for the idea that it could be almost over, and he recognizes that, because I did it myself so I’m almost judging myself, [but] I don’t love it when athletes put a timeline or a finishing point on a career that is still actively going on… He may be different to me, but I know what it did to me at the end of my career,” Cormier said.,
“I don’t love that there are so many references to ‘my last dance’, it’s like if you have any desire to fight, you’ve got to be so in the fight that there is no thought as to what comes next, I don’t love that,” he added.
It makes the fighter lose focus
Cormier also pointed out that another thing he doesn’t like about Poirier declaring potential retirement is the fact that it divides the focus of not only him but maybe even his opponent, leading up to the fight.
“That is a hard thing to do because I’ll tell you this right now, the life after the fight while it may be hard to adjust to initially, when you look at it from the inside when everything’s so tough and you’re fighting one of the most dangerous people in the world, the other side seems very nice,” Cormier began.
“When you start looking to the other side, when you’re looking to a time where you don’t have to get up every morning and run seven miles, spar, grapple, and wrestle. it really does open up a world that the active fighter should never really think about,” he added.
Poirier will try and finally become the lightweight champion after 13 years under the UFC banner. He is coming off a knockout win over Benoit St. Denis at UFC 299. On the other hand, Makhachev will hope to defend his title for the third time. UFC 302 will take place on June 1 at the Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey.
