Daniel Cormier believes patience may be the most important factor as the UFC navigates uncertainty at the top of the women’s bantamweight division.
Plans for a major title fight were disrupted when Kayla Harrison was forced to withdraw due to a neck injury, removing her scheduled bout with Amanda Nunes from UFC 324. Early reports suggest the injury could keep Harrison sidelined for at least six months, creating questions about how the promotion should move forward with Nunes during that time.
Harrison captured the bantamweight title last summer and has not defended it since. Even a shorter recovery timeline would place her close to a year away from competition. At the same time, Nunes has not fought since mid 2023 and was preparing for a return from retirement specifically for the matchup with Harrison.
Cormier Questions Interim Title Logic
Speaking on The Ariel Helwani Show, Cormier expressed concern over the seriousness of the injury and whether rushing into an interim championship fight makes sense.
“That’s bad, right? Neck is bad,” Cormier said. “… Is Kayla gone for six months? Because if Kayla’s gone for only six months, you can’t say this is an interim title fight. Because Amanda Nunes-Kayla Harrison is a massive fight. Kayla is vocal, too, right? … How would she feel about an interim title fight?
“The one thing that you don’t necessarily need with Amanda Nunes is her holding a belt. You can just put one on her. And then the visual is two champions fighting. If she fights and if she gets an interim title fight, now you put a belt on her, but Kayla Harrison just fought recently. Like, does an interim title make sense? Yes, you want to fight Amanda Nunes. Problem is, and Chael always made this point, you don’t get better by not doing something.”
Cormier emphasized that the value of the original matchup outweighs the short term appeal of creating a temporary title situation.
Protecting the Bigger Fight
Cormier made it clear that the priority should be preserving the eventual meeting between Nunes and Harrison, especially given the unanswered questions surrounding how each would look at this stage of their careers.
“If it’s going to be longer than six months, you fight her with the hope that she still wins, and now you’ve got two champions, both of them holding belts,” Cormier said. “… I feel like (Nunes) will get an option, but I don’t know if it’s ultimately going to be her decision. Because, dude, you can’t make a bigger female fight than Amanda Nunes-Kayla Harrison, and Amanda looked in phenomenal shape last time I saw her on some pictures. She looks great. You would guess that she would still be able to manage just about everyone in fighting.
“… So, it’s relatively safe, I’d imagine, but man, you cannot lose Kayla Harrison-Amanda Nunes because of all the questions we don’t know. We know that Kayla Harrison can beat everyone, but can she beat Amanda Nunes? If Amanda goes out and fights and wins and doesn’t look great, then it kind of becomes more like, ‘Well, this is someone else that Kayla Harrison is going to get.’”
Cormier suggested that allowing the matchup to lose momentum could lessen its impact once Harrison returns.
While Nunes remains one of the most accomplished fighters in MMA history, Cormier cautioned against assuming past dominance will automatically translate after time away. At the same time, he believes the intrigue surrounding Harrison facing her toughest challenge remains too important to compromise.
Until there is greater clarity on Harrison’s recovery, the UFC faces a difficult balancing act between keeping Nunes active and protecting a fight that could define the division.
For Cormier, the answer depends entirely on how long Harrison is truly out. Anything shorter than an extended absence, he believes, should keep the focus firmly on the matchup fans have been waiting to see.
