"I struggled to take Jon Jones down" - Daniel Cormier explains why he doesn't agree with Henry Cejudo saying Bo Nickal will dominate Khamzat Chimaev

Daniel Cormier recalled his difficulties fighting Jon Jones to explain why Bo Nickal might struggle against Khamzat Chimaev in a potential bout.

This comes after former UFC two-division champion Henry Cejudo claimed that Nickal would easily take Chimaev down should they meet in the octagon. During the latest episode of The DC & RC show on ESPN MMA, the former UFC champ-champ said:

"Nickal doesn't allow bumps in the road to really deter him. Or knock him off course. He's always heading down one path and that's being the best. And when you match him up in just wrestling, I don't believe that Khamzat [Chimaev] can compete with him."

As far as Cormier is concerned, however, Nickal being the better wrestler doesn't guarantee that he'll be able to impose his will on Chimaev. The UFC Hall of Famer even pointed to his own struggles against rival Jones to get his point across:

"But in mixed martial arts, that makes it a little bit more difficult to implement just a strong wrestling base. Look, I struggled taking down Jon Jones even though I was a much more credentialed wrestler – because he was taller. There are so many factors that go into effectively wrestling someone inside the octagon. So I get what Henry is saying, but I think that, in time, that may be true. Today, I think that Bo Nickal still needs a little bit of work."

Catch Daniel Cormier's comments below:

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"Calm your a** down" - Daniel Cormier warns Bo Nickal about challenging Khamzat Chimaev

Daniel Cormier has been apprehensive of Bo Nickal's decision to call out Khamzat Chimaev as soon as he was signed by the UFC.

According to the retired fighter-turned-color commentator, Nickal is too inexperienced at this point to give Chimaev a run for his money. In a video uploaded to his personal YouTube Channel, 'DC' said:

"Call out Khamzat Chimaev? I love the confidence. But Bo, calm your a** down. He’ll tell me I’m crazy. He will. But Khamzat Chimaev right now? It’s too much. It’s too much. He’s not going to beat Khamzat Chimaev today. Now, down the line, he just might. He just might be a guy that can compete. But right now, he needs a little work."

Watch the video below:

Nickal is set to make his promotional debut on the UFC 282 pay-per-view card in December. The three-time NCAA Division I national wrestling champ will square off against fellow middleweight Jamie Pickett.