Volkan Oezdemir predicts KO inside two minutes against Daniel Cormier

Volkan Oezdemir has had a surging start to his UFC tenure, taking three wins in as many outings inside his first eight months with the promotion.

He snapped Misha Cirkunov’s eight-fight win streak with a first round knockout back in May before top ranked contender Jimi Manuwa was subjected to the same treatment at UFC 214.

If that wasn’t enough to solidify him as the number one contender at light heavyweight, champion Daniel Cormier recently ran a poll on who he should fight next. When Oezdemir was the name most fans went for, Cormier confirmed that the towering Swiss knockout artist was next on his list.

Oezdemir was delighted to see that the fans choose him as Cormier’s next opponent.

“Of course I was looking at it really closely,” Oezdemir told Ariel Helwani on the latest episode of The MMA Hour.

“That was something huge. I’m really humbled. Cormier is somebody I respect a lot. The fact that he called me out, made a poll and his fans wanted me – that’s something that mans even more to me.

“If the fans choose me, it means a lot to me. I’m really happy with everything that’s happening right now. The year 2017 is a great year for me and 2018 is going to be even better for sure.”

Oezdemir confirmed that no official date had been set by the UFC.

“Yeah, we’re going to talk soon, but right now we are trying to promote the fight more. That fight is definitely going to happen. I want it for sure and I understand Cormier wants it also. So, yeah,” he said.

Cormier suffered the first knockout loss of his career to Jon Jones at UFC 214, which was later overturned to a no contest after Jones was flagged by USADA.

Given Oezdemir’s heavy-handed reputation, he thinks Cormier’s knockout out at the hands of Jones is not an ideal situation for the 38-year-old if a fight between them does get made.

“It’s not going to be the best situation for him because I’ve got knockout power, that’s for sure. I hope his brain recovered well I’m going to bring the heat.”

“No Time” expects to face Cormier in early 2018, and should he share the Octagon with Cormier, he thinks he will get the job done in two minutes.

“I think in the first two minutes, that’s my goal anyway. I’m going to make all of my training so I will be able to knock him out,” Oezdemir said.

“I have no time for this. I don’t want to get injured, I’m just going to knock him out really fast.”