NEW YORK – UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier sat down with former NFL stars and “The Pivot Podcast” co-hosts Ryan Clark, Channing Crowder and Fred Taylor to discuss a wide-range of topics and share wisdom from his storied career in a new episode on the show’s YouTube page. 

A 2022 inductee into the UFC Hall of Fame, Cormier began the episode discussing his upbringing, prodded by Clark, his ESPN colleague and fellow Louisiana native. Despite growing up in a football culture, Cormier almost accidentally began his combat career before instantly becoming enamored with the discipline. 

“I wanted to play football, but I also loved WCW wrestling,” said Cormier. “When the wrestling coach first brought me in, I thought I was going to be doing some WCW stuff. But I fell in love with it, because I didn’t have to rely on anyone else. … As a 15-year-old kid, I made the world team. I had never even been on an airplane … so first time I was ever on an airplane, I went to Hungary and won a world medal.”

As the conversation moved into UFC talk, the co-hosts referenced their recent guest and rising UFC star Sean O’Malley in asking Cormier about modern fighters’ desire for fame and acclaim outside of the octagon. While Cormier believes the records left behind will endure past anything, he understands the real success modern fighters have found with alternate revenue sources.

“Let’s not mistake fame for success,” said Cormier. “Because success in the octagon is different than being a famous person. What we ultimately do is, we fight. All that other stuff is fleeting. That legacy is what’s going to stand the test of time. You have to make sure that you’re establishing that.

“But athletes are smarter today, and you have to find different ways to make different revenue. Not everyone earns seven figures like the champions. Sean O’Malley is a good fighter with a ton of potential, but his following allows him to make a life outside of fighting. He probably makes more money there than he does when he steps into the octagon.”

As always, the co-hosts make sure to dig deep with Cormier and allow him to shed light on the difficult domestic situations he endured in his youth. With his father largely out of the picture, Cormier gives his mother credit for supporting him, making him the man he is today and allowing him to set that same kind of example for his own child.

“It’s not easy dealing with what my pops put her through,” said Cormier. “She re-found herself and became this sweet human being. Without her, I don’t have what I have. … She was just the best. It’s hard to put into words what she meant to me. … If you knew her, you were better for it. Her funeral had so many people there, and it was just indicative of what she meant to the community. 

“I want to make sure that I set the right example for my kid, so he can do the same thing when he has children. I’ve had to go through so much between my dad and losing my daughter, but I always say, anything that you have to deal with, it was put on your journey. We never have clean journeys. We have to go through so much. In those moments, that’s how you figure out who you are.”

No conversation with the decorated former light heavyweight and heavyweight UFC champion Cormier would be complete without talk of his memorable rivalry with Jon Jones, which has been defined by a series of failed drug tests by Jones and a war of words that matched their action in the octagon. Jones has recently stated that he’s moved on past the hard feelings, but for Cormier, the resentment is harder to relinquish.

“It’s easy for him to say that he’s past that stuff, because he’s the one who cheated,” said Cormier. “The dude is so talented, he could have won the fights anyway. … Every time we fight and you get suspended, we still went through the memory of you winning the fight, that memory does not disappear. Even though it’s a no-contest, people saw me lose.”

“For me it’s like, you did some stuff to my career, to where I could never really settle. Maybe the dude was just better than me, but if you weren’t doing those things that boosted you, could you really work to the level that I’m working?”

To close out the spirited episode, Clark asks Cormier to deliver his message to the young children who grew up the same way they did, and what he has learned from a remarkable life defined by triumphs in fighting and beyond.

“I think what’s most important is that in the bad, you don’t get lost in it,” said Cormier. “Through adversity, you have to try to strive and propel yourself to different heights. When you come from a situation like mine, and you don’t have much, you’re going to get knocked back. Most times when you get knocked back, you search for the fast answer. You’re gonna try to sell drugs, try to steal and do all the things that not only won’t help, but will just push you further into the situation that you’re in. … Don’t feel like a victim. Try to get stronger through the adversity. That’s what ultimately made me who I am today.”