Getty Daniel Cormier was challenged to fight by an NBA exec.
Retired UFC legend Daniel Cormier was challenged by an NBA executive to “spar 8 rounds on PPV” after “DC” blasted the Philadelphia 76ers basketball team on Monday. Dave Sholler is the senior vice president of communications for the 76ers, but he’s also apparently comfortable enough in his relationship with one of the most decorated MMA fighters in history to crack back at Cormier after the former UFC “champ champ” lashed out at his team.
Cormier was reacting to the news that Philadelphia’s president of basketball operations Daryl Morey was being fined $75,000 by the NBA for a controversial tweet Morey posted about Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry.
You can see the exchange between Cormier and the NBA exec below.
@dc_mma This feels like a work from you, DC. Do you and I need to spar 8 rounds on PPV to settle this? I already put you over once…
Cormier posted, “Daryl Morey is such a dirty cheater. They should fine him so much more. I like Philly, but can’t if this cat is running the show. He’s dishonest and has no loyalty! @DaveSholler smh you need to control this”.
Sholler posted, “This feels like a work from you, DC. Do you and I need to spar 8 rounds on PPV to settle this? I already put you over once…”.
Morey was fined for suggesting Curry should leave Golden State to join the 76ers.
join ’em
Sholler was probably only joking about fighting Cormier, but at least one fan reacted to the news as if he was being serious. He posted, “Dam, Dave”, along with a picture of Sholler’s presumed upcoming funeral.
You can see that post below.
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Sholler Was Tossed off Stage by Cormier and Jon Jones
Sholler and Cormier go way back.
Cormier, 41, retired from fighting after his last fight against Stipe Miocic at UFC 252 last year. His overall MMA record was 22-3, and he shared the Octagon with the likes of Miocic, Jon Jones, and Anderson Silva.
Meanwhile, Sholler’s known fighting record is 0-0. However, Sholler did previously work as the UFC’s Vice President of Public Relations, so he has at least spent a lot of time with Cormier and other top-flight fighters.
In his UFC role, Sholler was infamously thrown off the stage when Cormier and Jones got into a scuffle ahead of what was supposed to be their first fight at UFC 178 in 2014.
You can watch Sholler get tossed off the stage below.
Perhaps it was during that epic fall that Sholler made a mental note of someday challenging either Cormier or Jones for causing his viral tumble.
Maybe he’s been training this whole time for unarmed combat, biding his time for the perfect moment to strike.
Or maybe he was just having a little fun.
Whatever the case, Sholler was ready to respond to Cormier’s tweet in what turned out to be one of the most unexpected ways possible.
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Cormier vs. Sholler on PPV?
Sholler said he would be down to fight Cormier in an “8 rounds” fight on pay-per-view, perhaps in the same way Floyd Mayweather and Logan Paul did battle inside a boxing ring in Miami on Sunday night.
Mayweather and Paul went eight rounds over the weekend, so maybe Sholler feels like he could do the same with Cormier.
Heck, come to think of it, Mayweather vs. Paul seemed just as impossible when it was first mentioned as a possibility a few months ago, so maybe Cormier vs. Sholler is the next big thing to come along in combat sports.
If that’s the case, then remember where you read about the big news first.
A day after the story was published, Sholler revealed to Heavy, “Definitely joking. DC is a good friend and passionate hoops fan!”
So the Cormier vs. Sholler megafight appears to be dead in the water.
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Daniel Cormier Challenged To Fight by NBA Exec [LOOK]