Add Daniel Cormier to the list of people not enthusiastic about Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone coming back to the UFC.

Earlier this week, “Cowboy” announced he intends to end his retirement and fight two more times in the UFC, hitting 50 total bouts between the UFC and WEC. The announcement received mixed reviews, with UFC CEO Dana White being among the most ardently opposed to it. But Daniel Cormier might give him a run for his money.

“The one thing about Cowboy, is that it’s very refreshing to watch how open he’s been with all of this,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “He never lied. He never lied about what he was doing, what he was going to do, and how he was going to apply it to his life. And I’m all for a guy that has personal goals. And I love Cowboy... But at the end of the day, for years now, he’s been openly using steroids.”

“When you’re training, you start to feel better. You start to feel like yourself again, especially with the help. Then you go, ‘I want to fight again.’ But at the end of the day, Cowboy has been doing steroids, openly!”

Cormier is not the only fighter to raise these concerns. Cerrone himself noted he’s been taking TRT for years now along with other things and is now in the process of getting off those so he can re-enter the USADA testing pool and return to action, which is perfectly legal per the testing criteria. But Cormier believes that even if it abides by the letter of the law, it goes against the spirit of them.

“He’s not been clean,” Cormier said. “And even if he can come back, take tests, pass those tests to get back, he had to do all those things, all those enhancers to allow for him to feel like he can compete at that level again.

“So he would test clean, but isn’t that just a loophole? Isn’t it just a loophole like the guys that when they get hurt, they get out of the testing pool, then when they recover from the injury, then they re-enter the testing pool? It’s not wrong. It’s not illegal. But is it right? Because you truly have been enhanced to get to where you are and how you feel, and feel good enough to come back and fight in the elite organization of the UFC.

“To me, it doesn’t feel right.”

To add to all this, Cormier notes that the nature of Cerrone’s exit from MMA opens up even more questions for his return. Cerrone left the sport having lost six of his final seven fights, with a no-contest as the only non-loss of his final three years competing. If Cerrone comes back looking like a new man, Cormier wonders how that will look given the circumstances. So all things considered, Cormier believes the UFC shouldn’t allow this to happen.

“Remember also, Cowboy lost six fights, had one no-contest in seven fights, and the last time he fought Jim Miller and got submitted,” Cormier said. “Imagine if he comes back and he looks like a world-beater. I’m against it. I’m honestly against the idea that you could find a loophole, go in and use that loophole, feel better while using that loophole, come back and fight because you can pass a clean test.

“I like Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone. I’m against Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone getting to compete in the UFC after openly doing what he’s been doing for the last two and a half years.”

TOP STORIES

Lawsuit. Gegard Mousasi is suing Bellator/PFL, seeking $15 million in damages.

Interim. Alexander Volkanovski is open to an interim title fight against Diego Lopes if in Australia.

Trash talk. PFL CEO Donn Davis issued a challenge to Dana White ahead of PFL’s big event this weekend.

Return. Brendan Schaub discusses Cowboy Cerrone’s return to MMA, possible issues.

VIDEO STEW

Between the Links

Full PFL Press Conference.

PFL faceoffs.

Contender Series highlights.

Max Holloway training camp.

SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE

Tom Aspinall in the WWE.

Ride for your people.

Next gen Cowboy Cerrone.

Looking for a new home.

Deep.

Georges St-Pierre has the sort of retirement we should all aspire to: just chilling.

FINAL THOUGHTS

This should be pretty simple: if you believe in drug testing, then Cerrone should be allowed to compete if he passes the tests. If you bar him from fighting despite him coming in clean, that’s pretty clearly dumb. You believe in the science or you don’t. Pick one.

EXIT POLL

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