“Those guys, their strength and conditioning routine is f–n crazy. When Daniel Cormier was telling me about this Russian dude that he could not beat, he was like, ‘We’re so lucky that this guy never fought,’” Joe Rogan stated during the JRE #2256 podcast episode with Ari Shaffir and others. He was talking about how an Olympic Russian wrestler was so dominant in his craft that it even proved to be a problem for Daniel Cormier, who used to ragdoll other opponents. Such was his prowess that the former two-division UFC champ said he could’ve overwhelmed Jon Jones if they had ever faced off in the Octagon.

Cormier appeared on the JRE MMA Show #150, where he and Joe Rogan dove into various topics related to MMA, especially wrestling, given that ‘DC’ is a former Olympian. His rivalry with Jon Jones came up as a defining part of his career, one he couldn’t overcome despite two tries. During the conversation, Cormier named his former opponent, Khadjimourat Gatsalov—the man who defeated him in the 2004 Summer Olympics semi-finals as someone even Jon ‘Bones’ Jones would’ve had a hard time dealing with.

In the JRE Episode, ‘DC’ said: “There was one guy that beat me in the Olympic semifinals, his name is Khadjimourat Gatsalov. We’re lucky that son of a b—th didn’t fight. Cause he would’ve beat everybody, Jon Jones included. Every one of them woud’ve gotten their a–s whopped by that dude.”

The 2004 Athens Olympics winner was definitely a force to be reckoned with. But, presently, things turned south, as according to ESPN MMA report Gastalov was caught up in the state-backed doping scandal in Russia. Richard McLaren and the World Anti-Doping Agency obtained data from the Moscow testing laboratory, along with help from the International Testing Agency. Their findings revealed that Gatsalov allegedly tested positive for the banned substance ipamorelin from a 2015 sample. The Switzerland-based agency further stated: “[The d–g] stimulates the body’s release of growth hormone, which, in turn, promotes muscle growth, fat loss, and recovery.”

The repercussions have already taken effect, as the International Testing Agency has suspended Gatsalov from appearing as a coach or official at international events. He had also secured five world titles by 2015, before the positive test result came to light, which now casts a shadow over his accomplishments and raises serious questions. There are still many details yet to unfold, and more clarity is expected to emerge with time.

However, it’s no doubt that Gastalov gained a great reputation among the the UFC fighters, especially in the eyes of his former Olympic challenger, Daniel Cormier, who once hired him as a training partner ahead of his fight against Jon Jones at UFC 182. Although the former two-division champion fell short, he expressed what training with the Russian felt like. 

Daniel Cormier revealed Khadjimourat Gatsalov never got tired during UFC 182 camp for Jon Jones

Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier was the bad blood rivalry that original fans remember to their core, long before Conor McGregor vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov took over as the pinnacle of heated exchanges. The former light heavyweight champs crossed every boundary, and who could forget that infamous brawl during the UFC 178 pre-fight press conference face-off? That fight was eventually scrapped due to Jones suffering a torn meniscus and was later rescheduled for UFC 182.

During his UFC 182 camp to face Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier brought in Khadjimourat Gatsalov as a training partner, on the advice of his strength coach. But as we all know, things didn’t go as planned. Cormier suffered a unanimous decision loss and came up short in his quest for the belt. Still, the grind of those training days stuck with him. On Joe Rogan’s podcast, ‘DC’ recalled how Gatsalov never seemed to get tired, no matter how intense the sessions got.

The former two-division champ told Rogan in their podcast episode: “I brought him in to train with me for Jon Jones. My strength coach told me that he tried to break him; [he said] ‘No matter what I did, he never stopped, he never got tired, and he always wanted to do more’. That’s why the dude is a 6x world champion. He was the best. We’re just lucky he didn’t fight because all of us wouldn’t have any accomplishments.”

Gastalov undoubtedly had impressive wrestling that could have led to significant accomplishments inside the UFC. However, whether those skills would have been as effective against someone like Jon Jones remains debatable. Especially considering that he has mastered so many disciplines along with wrestling.

That being said, do you think Khadjimourat Gatsalov would’ve been able to defeat Jon Jones? Also, what do you think the future holds for him now that he’s been caught using a banned substance?