December 18, 2024 1: 50 pm ET
Daniel Cormier sees star potential in a top UFC welterweight contender.
When assessing the landscape at 170 pounds, Cormier believes Jack Della Maddalena (17-2 MMA, 7-0 UFC) could be a big draw if he becomes champion. Unbeaten in the octagon, Della Maddalena hasn’t competed since rallying to knock out Gilbert Burns at UFC 299 in March. He has been recovering from complications due to arm surgery.
“I think Jack Della Maddalena is one fight away from becoming a guy fighting for the belt,” Cormier said on “Good Guy/Bad Guy” with Chael Sonnen. “If that fight is against Kamaru Usman, he will be rushed into that title fight. Let me tell you something about the UFC: Vince McMahon famously said, ‘I don’t like the UFC because I cannot control the outcome.’ What the UFC will do, they do know how to follow a game plan and they do know star-building.
“So when you get a guy like Jack Della Madd