





Five years ago, Daniel Cormier was sitting behind a desk in Storrs, Okla., hawking ad space for a local TV station.

His athletic career, once so promising, was a distant memory.

He was fourth in his weight class in freestyle wrestling in Athens in 2004, and hung around to go for a medal in Beijing in 2008.

A man with a magnetic personality and natural leadership abilities, it was no surprise that Cormier was chosen as the wrestling team's captain in Beijing.

But Cormier struggled so badly to make the 211-pound weight limit that his body shut down and he was physically unable to compete. Team USA doctors pulled him from the competition and he was, it seemed, done forever with athletics.

A little more than five years since those fateful days much has changed for Cormier.

He's still involved with television, but instead of selling commercials, he's talking in front of the camera. Cormier is one of a group of UFC fighters Fox has hired to work as expert analysts.

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He's been brilliant in his short time at it. He's worked in the studio, where his insights have been consistently on the money. He delivers his analysis quickly and smoothly, a real pro's pro.

Cormier's work with Fox has been as first-rate as his fighting, and he's a guy who clearly will have a job long after his fighting career ends.

Fox executive Steve Becker raved about Cormier's work in front of the camera.

"Daniel has an ability to break down fights in a comfortable and easy-to-understand style," Becker said. "He's a natural in front of the camera and could easily transition to full-time analyst work after he's done with his fighting career."

For the short term, though, it's his fighting that will pay the bills and keep him in the limelight. The affable ex-Oklahoma State star is regarded as one of the best mixed martial arts fighters in the world. He's also unusual in that he's a legitimate title contender at both heavyweight and light heavyweight.

"It's unreal," Cormier said after he finished a workout session in preparation for his Oct. 19 bout in Houston against Roy Nelson at the Toyota Center at UFC 166. "All of this has happened so fast. I was at the end of my athletic career with wrestling and it didn't end the way I wanted. I'm blessed and I'm lucky to be in the situation I'm in."

Cormier plans to make his title run at light heavyweight and plans to drop after the bout with Nelson. Given that, the bout with Nelson seems to make little sense. If Cormier has no business at heavyweight, and with Nelson coming off a loss, it's hard to see how the bout advances Cormier's career.

But for whatever reason, Cormier and Nelson have it in for each other and have exchanged barbs in the media, leading to the fight being made. And that, Cormier says, makes the bout with Nelson meaningful.

Nelson has become a favorite whipping boy of UFC president Dana White, who has constantly chided Nelson for his beer belly, overgrown beard and general appearance.

Nelson is coming off a stunningly one-sided loss to Stipe Miocic, but had been on a good run and making progress toward a heavyweight title shot before that.

And Cormier said he's preparing for the version of Nelson who had captured Knockout of the Night in two of his previous three bouts.

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