For Daniel Cormier, it's enmity at UFC 210 and love ever after

(This story originally appeared on usatoday.com.)

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Daniel Cormier has been preparing for his most important battle and the headlining act of UFC 210 in ways that are both typical and highly unusual.

There has been all the stuff you might expect from a UFC light heavyweight champion: Sweating buckets, cutting weight, sparring with pro boxers, grappling with wrestlers, and even freezing his body by immersing himself in a cryotherapy chamber for post-workout replenishment.

Yet as he has prepared to take on Anthony Johnson at Buffalo’s KeyBank Center on Saturday, Cormier (18-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) also has been tapping into a romantic side that could scarcely be further removed from the brutal rigors of the octagon.

His downtime has been consumed by wedding planning, with the Johnson scrap taking place just weeks before the former Olympic wrestler walks down the aisle with longtime partner Salina Deleon.

“I get on the (planning) web site and get away from the wear and tear of the mental drain of training camp,” Cormier told USA TODAY Sports during a recent interview at his Bay Area training base, American Kickboxing Academy (AKA). “I am involved. I take care of the stuff on the phone. I went and checked out the venue, went to the food tastings. But we moved the cake testing to after the fight.”

If Cormier defends his title against No.1-ranked light heavyweight contender Johnson (22-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC), then he will likely get another crack at the only man to have beaten him. Jon Jones defeated Cormier on points in January 2015, and the pair were due to reconvene at UFC 200 last summer before Jones was popped for taking a banned substance three days prior to the event. A rematch, especially if it has Cormier’s belt on the line, would generate serious interest, and serious, career-high money.

Getting ready for his nuptials is a diversion for Cormier, but a necessary one. He is not one to get complacent or underestimate a rival. On the contrary, he is far more likely to overthink things. Having an outlet to occupy the moments when he is not getting crunched into optimum shape at AKA is invaluable.

“It’s very much a great distraction,” Cormier said. “Otherwise, all I’d think about is (Johnson). People don’t understand the way I think. It consumes me. Fighting consumes me. I think about the stuff I want to do all the time. So taking my mind off that has been great. When something’s happening then, I’m on that thing. I work out, spar, constantly work. In the meantime now, I can look at the invitations or build the website, so that’s cool.”

At 38, Cormier says he has never been fitter, nor better. He was crushed by Jones’ exit from UFC 200, losing both the chance of redemption against a man he dislikes intensely and also around $1 million in pay.

He accepted at short notice a match against legendary UFC icon Anderson Silva, had his paycheck slashed, dominated every round, used his greater bulk to his advantage, and still got booed for his trouble.

It didn’t help that he was up against an all-time crowd favorite in Silva, but Cormier has for some reason become one of the main guys UFC crowds love to root against. More fool them; his physical grappling style may not produce a glut of highlight reel moments, but he is undoubtedly one of his generation’s elite.

Beating Johnson for a second time to follow up on the submission victory he racked up against him at UFC 187 in May 2015 would cement both his legacy and his top three spot in the current pound-for-pound list.

He accepts and expects that Johnson will present an improved version on Saturday, and is ready for it.

“He’ll be more patient, not so excited when he stands or lands a punch,” Cormier said. “Last time we fought, he was a tad overzealous. He’d hit me and just go crazy. If he does that, I’ll just bull right over him. He has to fight with intensity, because when he does, he’s dangerous. And if he tries to be patient, he’s not as dangerous.”

Cormier has plenty of patience, in the ring and out of it. He waits for his chances to take a foe to the ground, where he is darn near unstoppable. He took the loss of the Jones money and a subsequent injury delay calmly.

But there is one thing he has no time for, not now, not after the fight, not if Dana White or Salina or anyone else made an emotional personal request for him to do so.

“I’m not picking the flowers,” Cormier said, as both the biggest fight and the happiest day of his life ticked closer.

For more on UFC 210, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

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