Daniel Cormier claims his former opponent would’ve beaten Jon Jones… ‘He was the best’

Daniel Cormier claims that one terrifying combat sports star could’ve beaten anybody in the UFC, including Jon Jones.

In his esteemed MMA career, ‘DC’ proved himself as one of the greatest competitors the sport has ever seen.

Cormier entered the flow state against Dan Henderson, beat Stipe Miocic to become heavyweight champion, and destroyed Derrick Lewis.

However, there was one opponent who put him in his place.

WOW: Jon Jones made chilling comment to Daniel Cormier before knocking him out cold

Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty ImagesDaniel Cormier says Khadzhimurat Gatsalov would’ve beaten Jon JonesAt the 2004 Athens Olympics, Daniel Cormier represented Team USA in freestyle wrestling, making it all the way to the semi-finals, where he ran into the terrifying Khadzhimurat Gatsalov.

Despite his best efforts, there was nothing the American could do, losing 5-0 in a devastating defeat.

Now, Cormier is insistent that had the Russian switched to MMA, he would’ve taken over the sport.

In an interview on The Joe Rogan Experience, he explained: “There was one guy that beat me in the Olympics semi-finals, his name was Khadzhimurat Gatsalov. We’re lucky that son of a b—- didn’t fight, because he would’ve beaten everybody and Jon Jones included.

“He beat me, he beat me, Cael Sanderson, Kyle Snyder, this dude was so fast.

“I brought him in to train with me for Jon Jones. My strength coach told me that he tried to break him; [he said] ‘No matter what I did, he never stopped, he never got tired, and he always wanted to do more’. That’s why the dude is a 6x world champion.

“He was the best. We’re just lucky he didn’t fight because all of us wouldn’t have any accomplishments.”

Daniel Cormier opens up about heart-wrenching message Jon Jones sent himOf course, Cormier’s comments come as no major surprise. After all, he’s constantly firing shots at Jones.

However, while the pair famously don’t get on, there have been occasions where they’ve put their rivalry to one side.

When times have been tough, they’ve reached out to support one another.

During an interview, Cormier opened up about the emotional message Jones sent to him.