It’s kind of like pushing someone into the corner of the screen on Street Fighter II back in the day; if you don’t like it then get out of the corner, bro. Many, many fans and fighters alike have made it known to the world that they don’t appreciate the grinding style brought on by fighters with wrestling backgrounds, and Olympic wrestler Daniel Cormier had a little something to say to them on todays Heavyweight Grand Prix conference call.
“It’s not my job, it’s not Jon Fitch’s job, it’s not Josh Barnett’s job to actually team someone takedown defense,” “It’s their job to learn takedown defense. If they can’t defend the takedown, then they deserve to lay on their back for 15 minutes.”
“I think it’s always good to put on exciting fights,” Cormier said. “I like to fight. This is my job. If that means I have to stand with him and fight, then I have to fight. What if I can’t take him down? But at the end of the day, it’s about winning.”
“Why should I or anyone else that knows how to wrestle give up their biggest advantage? If a jiu-jitsu guy can get you down, he’s going to use his jiu-jitsu. If a striker can keep you standing, he’s going to use his standup ability. It’s your job, which MMA is, which fighting is, to learn all areas of the game.”
To be honest I have no idea where the fight ends up between Cormier and Bigfoot. We thought his fight with Monson was going to be a grappling clinic and it turned out to be 15 minutes of stand up. One thing is sure, Cormier won’t be afraid to fall back on what got him here: wrestling. What a card this September 10th show is eh?
[source]