"Probably would make fun of me" - Jordan Oliver shares what Daniel Cormier and Henry Cejudo likely thought of his Bellator debut
Jordan Oliver is riding high after his successful MMA debut, which saw him submit Andrew Triolo with an arm-triangle at 1:05 of the first round.
During his post-fight media availability, the former two-time NCAA Div I National wrestling champion was spoke about his decision to shoot for the takedown early. When asked what he thinks Daniel Cormier and Henry Cejudo (who he has close relationships with) would think of his Bellator debut, he mentioned that they would be proud and also take playful jibes at him.
He said:
"See, we're too close. [Daniel] Cormier and all those guys would probably make fun of me. They'd be like, 'Dude, you shot too quick. You scared to let your hands go?', so they would be very proud. I got in, I took care of business." [3:20 - 3:32]
Jordan Oliver also brought up what he took away from his MMA debut and areas he believes he has room for improvement. He mentioned that he will continue to work on his development as a fighter and make the necessary adjustments, saying:
"I'm a perfectionist...There's a lot I need to work on. Even going into this fight, it's my first fight. You're wondering where am I at, what do I expect, how is this gonna play out? Sometimes you just gotta let go." [3:36 - 4:08]
It will be interesting to see who Jordan Oliver fights next as looks to ascend the featherweight rankings.
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Jordan Oliver credits Daniel Cormier for inspiring his transition from wrestling to MMA
Jordan Oliver has a lot of gratitude towards his friend Daniel Cormier and even credits the UFC Hall of Famer for inspiring his transition from wrestling to MMA.
While speaking to Vibe 105.5FM Toronto, the former two-time NCAA Div I National wrestling champion noted that he had seen many wrestlers make the transition from collegiate wrestling to MMA. He mentioned that his fellow Oklahoma State University alum's successful UFC career inspired him to make that same transition to MMA, saying:
"Wrestling for Oklahoma State [University], getting to watch a guy named Daniel Cormier go through this process when he was chasing Olympic titles at Oklahoma State and then made a transfer into MMA...You could say that was a big inspiration of mine." [0:48 - 1:06]