Daniel Cormier is not at all happy with how things have been going in the UFC lightweight division. With Ilia Topuria making his way to the lightweight division, the general consensus was that he would face Ilia Topuria. However, Makhachev stated that he did not want to face Topuria. This was because the Dagestani fighters had already fought with a couple of featherweights before. But this decision has sparked the possibility of the UFC stripping him of his championship.
And this is where Daniel Cormier has a problem. In a recent appearance on the ‘Good Guy/Bad Guy’ podcast, DC called the UFC out for its double standards. He pointed fingers at Jon Jones and stated that he had only defended his title once in the last couple of years.
“You know what’s annoying to me is Islam Makhachev has said, ‘I don’t really want to fight Ilia Topuria because he’s a 45er and I’ve done that. Give me somebody else.’ People are like, ‘Take the belt off him.’ Why? In the last two years, he fought four times — in that same time, the heavyweight champ fought once,” said Cormier.
😤😤 Daniel Cormier questions MMA double standards as Islam faces stripping talks after 4 defenses, while Jon Jones stays champion with just 1 defense
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) May 2, 2025
"You know what’s annoying to me is Islam Makhachev has said, ‘I don’t really want to fight Ilia Topuria because he’s a 45er and… pic.twitter.com/pCfiBiyO2w
Surely, there have been talks about Jones not fighting enough in recent times. He has also received a significant bit of flak due to his reluctance to fight Tom Aspinall. Nonetheless, while the heavyweight division still awaits a definitive answer, the complications regarding the lightweight category are building up as well. However, in a recent statement, a UFC icon mentioned that it would not be easy for the UFC to strip Makhachev of his title.
Chael Sonnen Opines Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Influence Won’t Let UFC Strip Islam Makhachev Off His Title
Chael Sonnen thinks that Islam Makhachev will not be stripped off his title. Sonnen opined that Khabib Nurmagomedov is heavily respected in the MMA community. Thus, nobody would be able to hurt his sentiments by asking Makhachev to vacate the title. Instead, what they can do is wait to see how the welterweight title fight pans out.
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“Nobody would dare cross King Khabib. When Khabib tried to give his own damn belt back, they wouldn’t accept it. They’re trying to insist that Ilia Topuria vacated the title — if you look at the actions, he was stripped,” said Sonnen.
Chael Sonnen believes nobody would dare to strip Islam Makhachev of the title 🗣️👑
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) April 25, 2025
"Nobody would dare cross King Khabib. When Khabib tried to give his own damn belt back, they wouldn't accept it. They're trying to insist that Ilia Topuria vacated the title — if you look at the… pic.twitter.com/pHLzlLeyBV
Thus, with things looking quite confusing, it now remains to be seen which way the lightweight title fight goes.
Also Read: Islam Makhachev Has Reportedly Kickstarted His Training Camp For Upcoming Fight
