From virtually unknown to Chael Sonnen-esque clone, Patrick Cummins made quick work of his new hot promo style spotlight when he joined Charissa Thompson, UFC President Dana White, and upcoming UFC 170 opponent Daniel Cormier this past weekend.
Cummins (4-0, 4 TKOs), who filled in for an injured Rashad Evans in the co-main event slot, insinuated that he made former wrestling training partner Cormier “cry” during practice sessions in “D.C.’s” upcoming preparation for the 2008 Olympics.
Quick to rebut his claims, Cormier mentioned it was a very emotional time for him and that the former Barista fighter will pay for bringing up personal information, words and experiences that were supposed to stay behind closed doors.
Though Cummins might have struck a nerve and got under Cormier’s skin, White was all smiles because he instantly saw dollar signs metaphorically scraped across his new signee’s forehead. This wasn’t just a plain White smirk either, no pun intended. This was the same grin plastered across his face when Sonnen struck a pot of gold in his first and second fight promos opposite former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. And who could blame White?
Sonnen’s verbal gift resulted in major pay-per view buys for both cards, numbers unforeseen since the days of Tito Ortiz‘s oral war with Ken Shamrock and Brock Lesnar‘s rivalry with Frank Mir. The only problem is that the aforementioned fighters had supremely substantial fan backing coming into their fights.
Cummins on the other hand, filled in for a permeative fan favorite, immediately going from making lattes and double espressos to co-headlining a PPV with the premiere mixed martial arts organization in the world. Granted all of his fights ended via first round technical knockout, but his last two opponents hold a combined record of 5-18.
Thus the jury’s still out on whether or not Cummins can both write and cash the checks that come out as frequently as the ink in his mouth. However, he did seem to carry a confident tone when uttering is chances to defeat Cormier. So who are we not going to believe him? Saturday night surely can’t come soon enough.
Up until now, Cormier has cemented himself as a dominant and undefeated wrestler who uses top control to his supreme advantage in the cage, but metaphorically put fans to sleep with his less-than-stellar performance last year against Mir in a unanimous decision victory.
Cormier practically begged White to stay on this card and after a bit of reluctance, he finally gave in and found Cummins. The ex-barista was fired from his job for taking the phone call, but he didn’t care because his life was seemingly about to change overnight.
If Cummins can beat the odds as the overwhelming underdog after taking this fight on nine days notice, then this would be perhaps the greatest +1200 or more story in the history of combat sports. In case you’re wondering, those odds are a figure being thrown around the Internet as Las Vegas for the upcoming bout.
Whether or not he’s able to back up his crybaby tear claim, this card just got a whole lot more interesting. After possibly worrying about how to fill an entire hour’s worth of training video for Rousey/McMann and MacDonald/Maia, the countdown to UFC special should now be fairly intriguing. Let the fight promo games begin.