UFC champion Daniel Cormier, top contender Jimi Manuwa go to war on Twitter

Now that UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier has dismantled Anthony Johnson for a second time, forcing “Rumble” to shelf his career, and Jon Jones can’t be trusted to show up, “DC” is left to pick and choose down the 205-pound ladder. With Ryan Bader’s Bellator exit and rising prospect Misha Cirkunov not quite ready, that leaves power striker Jimi Manuwa. Luckily for the promotion, after Manuwa and Cormier shared words cageside following Cormier’s victory over Johnson at UFC 210, the two mixed insults once again during the following Twitter war:

The champ got the last word, but will he get the last punch? In such a depleted division, along with Manuwa’s marketable knockout power, Cormier may very well find himself across the cage from “Poster Boy” by the end of the year. While Manuwa is a solid fighter who has recorded huge victories inside of the Octagon, he’s ultimately a step down from the 205-pound elite because he’s been knocked out by Johnson and Alexander Gustafsson.

If Cormier can ground-and-pound his way past Manuwa, and Jones isn’t able to place his marbles in order, “DC” could be looking at Gustafsson, Glover Teixeira, and even possibly Mauricio Rua in 2018. Either way, Cormier seems to be in a league of his own in the lonely UFC light heavyweight division.