Daniel Cormier was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame last Thursday.
Former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier officially joins the list of inductees under the UFC Hall of Fame’s Modern Wing. There was one moment during Cormier’s career that created controversy. After Charles Oliveira was stripped of his title for coming in half a pound over the championship limit, an old video of Cormier’s debatable weigh-in resurfaced.
Daniel Cormier confesses to “towelgate” at UFC Hall of Fame induction
At the awards ceremony, Cormier admitted to grabbing onto the towel at UFC 210 in a bizarre attempt to make weight on his second attempt.
“Guys, I want to tell you something, because I think right now is the time to be completely transparent. I think I may have grabbed the towel in Buffalo.
“I walked back to the back after missing weight by 1.2 pounds, it was 1.2. I tried to give it up guys, trust me, I tried to give it up. I had a pound to lose, they even went and called my wife to try to get me back in the tub. I said, ‘No way, this sh*t’s over.’ She told me, Daniel, just take a hot bath. I go, ‘It’s not that simple.’”
Cormier recalled how his nutritionist Dan Leith reminded him of the old tricks wrestlers would use to deceive the system.
“He goes, ‘DC, do you remember the old wrestling trick? I said, can you stand behind me? Because there’s two. You can put your hands behind you and the person can lift you up. He said no, it’s the towel one.
“But do you understand the level of ridiculousness that has to happen in order for that to work? I looked down and could not believe my luck. I am a lucky guy. Even when I would lose, somehow the belt would just come back to me. I was like, I’m a lucky guy.
“So, I look down, and the commissioner’s down on the floor looking at the scale. There’s a second lady. I look down, and she’s right next to him, so I grab the towel like, ‘Sh*t, we home free!’”
DC apologizes to ‘Rumble’ Johnson for the incident
The 43-year-old Louisiana native squared off against Anthony Johnson at UFC 210 in April 2017. During the official weigh-ins for the event, ‘DC’ stepped in at 206.2-lbs, heavier than the 205-lbs limit, and was allowed to try again just a few minutes later.
Surprisingly, Cormier would make the weight and finish Johnson via a rear-naked choke submission in round two.
DC stayed firm on his ground and argued against the talks of him getting away with cheating. However, he did take the time to apologize to ‘Rumble’ Johnson for the incident.
“‘Rumble,’ I’m sorry, my guy.”
Cormier became the first athlete from American Kickboxing Academy to join the Hall of Fame. His former teammate Khabib Nurmagomedov headlined the class of 2022.
