Former Olympic wrestler Daniel Cormier made his long-awaited mixed martial arts debut on Friday night in Oklahoma, and although he won a second-round TKO over a fellow newcomer named Gary Frazier, he also showed that he has a long way to go in the sport.
In the first round Cormier got on top of Frazier and punched him, with Frazier simply covering himself up in the turtle position and mounting no offense at all. But while it was an easy round for Cormier, it wasn't an impressive one: A better fighter would have finished Frazier, and Cormier didn't look like he knew how to finish a fight.
Instead, the fight went to the second round, where Frazier at first looked like he might have some success loading up and landing his right hand. But when Cormier fought back, Frazier ran away. And once Cormier got Frazier to the ground again, he continued to punch him in the face until the referee stopped the fight.
Cormier asked the crowd afterward, "Was that exciting or what?" A few fans cheered, but the truth is, it wasn't particularly exciting. Cormier deserves congratulations for improving to 1-0, but he needs to get a lot better if he's going to beat an opponent of any quality.
In the first round Cormier got on top of Frazier and punched him, with Frazier simply covering himself up in the turtle position and mounting no offense at all. But while it was an easy round for Cormier, it wasn't an impressive one: A better fighter would have finished Frazier, and Cormier didn't look like he knew how to finish a fight.
Instead, the fight went to the second round, where Frazier at first looked like he might have some success loading up and landing his right hand. But when Cormier fought back, Frazier ran away. And once Cormier got Frazier to the ground again, he continued to punch him in the face until the referee stopped the fight.
Cormier asked the crowd afterward, "Was that exciting or what?" A few fans cheered, but the truth is, it wasn't particularly exciting. Cormier deserves congratulations for improving to 1-0, but he needs to get a lot better if he's going to beat an opponent of any quality.
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