Daniel Cormier thinks Sergei Pavlovich should serve as an alternate for Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic.
Pavlovich (17-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) scored his sixth consecutive first-round knockout when he stopped Curtis Blaydes in this past Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 222 headliner.
Pavlovich said he intends on waiting for the winner of the projected heavyweight title fight between champion Jones (27-1 MMA, 21-1 UFC) and Miocic (20-4 MMA, 14-4 UFC), but Cormier suggests he weighs in as a backup just like he did for Jones’ vacant title fight against Ciryl Gane at UFC 285.
“I weigh in, and I sit there as an alternate,” Cormier said of Pavlovich on his ESPN show “DC & RC.” “I don’t know if I fight again, because against Ciryl Gane, nobody knew it, but he was the alternate. So he sat there, made the weight, and then when Jon and Ciryl fought, he was just out. But he got paid some money. You don’t wanna risk letting your money dry up. You still get paid along the journey while you still may get an opportunity to fight the champion.
“Here’s the thing about those backup fighters. In most cases, especially at heavyweight, if he’s scheduled to fight as a backup, and Stipe and Jon are fighting, if Jones falls out, the fight will be off. If Miocic falls out then they will just slide him in, so he’s not gonna fight Stipe for the belt. He would fight Jones for the belt, so he could prepare as if he’s getting ready to fight Jon Jones and have himself ready to fight him in case he gets the call.”
UFC president Dana White said the promotion is targeting Jones vs. Miocic at Madison Square Garden in New York this fall. With the tear he’s on, Cormier even thinks Pavlovich fighting former champion Miocic next would be considered a step back.
“I would do that, because anything else now would be fighting backwards,” Cormier added. “Even fighting Stipe would be fighting backwards for Sergei Pavlovich, and I don’t know if right now he needs to do that.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 222.
