Tommy Gantt is the newest member of the UFC lightweight roster, and working with Daniel Cormier has pushed him to another level.
Gantt earned a contract on a recent episode of Dana White’s Contender Series,
picking up a first-round submission win against Adam Livingston. Ahead of the fight, Gantt trained with the former two-division UFC champion at The Academy, Cormier’s gym in Gilroy, Calif. Gantt has a lot of respect and admiration for Cormier, but admits the UFC Hall of Famer really pushes the work rate in the gym.
“Dude, it’s almost like a big brother, little brother relationship until we get in the practice room, then the dude gets crazy, man,” Gantt told MMA Fighting. “I’m like, ‘Dude, what are you talking about?’
“He’s like, ‘All right, let’s go,’ and I’m just like, ‘All right, man,’ and I just put my head down and kind of get to work, man. But it’s been tremendous, man. He’s a great person, a hell of a coach, and he just pushes you to new heights, man. I thought I was done [with a workout], he’s like, ‘Nope, we got two more.’ I was like, ‘All right, man, come on.’”
Gantt made his way up the pro ranks with an insane fighting schedule. Since April 2024, the 32-year-old has fought 12 times, even competing four times in a four week stretch at one point.
With that type of schedule, being active and in peak condition is something Gantt is accustomed to. However, he says working with Cormier takes things to another level.
“This last conditioning day we had, I was saying something about my hand,” Gantt explained. “I was like, ‘Dude, my hand’s gonna rip on the machine that we’re on. And he was like, ‘Well, let it rip then. You think this dude’s doing that?’ And I’m like, ‘All right,’ and I just hopped on the bike and kept it going, man.
“I call him Coach Crazy Horse, man. I think it’s gonna stick to him here soon.”
Now that Gantt is a UFC fighter, he may not compete at the insane rate as he did on the regional scene. As of now, the North Carolina native is taking things one day at a time until that call comes. But if it comes for a fight this weekend at UFC Perth, or any card the UFC has coming up, Gantt says he’s ready to go.
“I honestly haven’t thought about it, man,” Gantt said. “I kind of got to talk with my team and my coaches and kind of figure that part out because, obviously, they’re watching me train, they’re seeing me day in and day out. They’re looking at my weight and stuff like that, so I think they would know a little bit better than I do.
“But yeah, if the UFC called me today and was like, ‘Hey, I need you in Perth,’ I’ll be there. I’m a team guy so I’ll make that trip.”
