Daniel Cormier reveals who pushed him harder than Cain Velasquez or Luke Rockhold

Daniel Cormier is a retired fighter who has been through a lot during his MMA career. The legendary "DC" was the UFC light heavyweight champion, defended the belt three times, and at the end of his career won the heavyweight belt. If we add to that the victory in the Strikeforce Grand Prix tournament in heavyweight, it is clear that this is a truly successful fighter.

To achieve all these successes, Cormier fought a handful of "killers" of the era. From Jon Jones and Stipe Miočić to "Rumble" Johnson, Alexander Gustafsson, Anderson Silva, Frank Mir, etc., Cormier really fought only elite fighters for a long time.

'A match against Chael Sonnen would be so difficult'

There are few top fighters with whom Daniel has not shared the cage, but when it comes to such, Cormier has highlighted one name. It is the coach who will be opposing him in this season of the UFC's "Ultimate Fighter".

- A match against Chael Sonnen would be so difficult. Chael was, man... We trained together a couple of times and Sonnen gave me some of the hardest workouts I've ever done. Don't forget, I've trained with Luke Rockhold and Cain Velasquez my whole career. It was tough. Good, tough workouts. I would have had my hands full if we had fought, because his style was similar to mine," Cormier told the New York Post Sports.

That's a big compliment for Chael, who thanked him, but he claims Cormier just wants to be polite. "DC" and Sonnen have been good friends for years and host a podcast together, which probably played a role in Cormier's praise of Sonnen. Of course, it's important to remember that Sonnen was a really good fighter in his prime, and his wrestling was at an elite level. Styles make a fight, and Sonnen clearly wasn't the best stylistic match for Cormier.