Shortly after Daniel Cormier defeated Stipe Miocic to win the heavyweight championship at UFC 226 back in July, Brock Lesnar stormed the cage and cut a promo setting up a future fight between the two. UFC President Dana White made clear he intended on booking the bout, which would take place early next year when Lesnar is eligible to return to the Octagon after serving out a suspension for a failed drug test.
Not so fast.
If that was the original plan, it has since changed. Cormier has been booked to defend his heavyweight championship against Derrick Lewis in the main event of the upcoming UFC 230 pay-per-view on Nov. 3 in New York. That’s incredibly short notice, yes, but he told ESPN he was given an offer he couldn’t refuse. Meanwhile, his old nemesis, former Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones, is officially back and will be fighting Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 232 on Dec. 29. This is relevant because that bout will be for the light heavyweight championship Cormier is currently in possession of — he will be stripped of it to crown one of those two the new champion. It’s also relevant because “DC” has made clear he has two fights left in him, including the Lewis bout.
After he’s finished his business next month, and assuming he’s victorious, he’ll have a decision to make. It doesn’t sound like he’s settled on it:
“I can still fight in March and hit my retirement date. The one opponent that would matter to me most is Jones, because he’s beaten me twice. The one that would mean more financially would be Lesnar. I think I would always pick the one that means more, but my wife might have something to say about that.”
If Cormier is driven to avenge those two losses to Jones, and UFC agrees to book the fight, that leaves Lesnar out in the cold. He’s still intending on returning for another big payday, but this could throw a wrench in that plan. For now, he’s back in WWE, preparing to wrestle for a big pro wrestling payday at Crown Jewel on Nov. 2 in Saudi Arabia (assuming that event goes forward as planned).
So while they ran an angle that created interest in a Cormier vs. Lesnar heavyweight title fight, it’s entirely possible it never happens.
Then again, Lesnar also has a potential fight against Jones to fall back on.
Stay tuned.