Ex-UFC champ Dan Cormier said he welcomes a fight with Jake Paul, but has one demand the creator won’t ever accept

• Former UFC champion Dan Cormier is open to fighting the internet celebrity Jake Paul.
• Paul is an unbeaten boxer but Cormier doesn't want to box him. He wants to fight him in MMA.
• "I'm going to torture [him], rip his face apart, and hurt the kid," said Cormier.
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UFC commentator and former two-weight champion Dan Cormier welcomes a fight with Jake Paul.

However, he has one demand, and it is one Paul will likely never accept – the ex-Olympian wants to fight the YouTube creator while adhering to a unified mixed martial arts ruleset, as opposed to the Queensberry rules of boxing.

Cormier said as much during an ESPN show Monday, two days after confronting Paul at the UFC 261 event in Florida. This followed a Twitter back and forth, as the pair escalate a rivalry.

Paul has become one of the biggest names in combat sport thanks to three victories in squash matches in boxing.

That, normally, wouldn't be enough to generate crossover fame in both boxing and MMA, but Paul has done that while trolling many of the sport's biggest names like Conor McGregor.

Now Cormier is seemingly in his crosshairs.

'Keep my name out of your mouth'

Cormier said on his ESPN show that he stepped to Paul at the weekend because the internet sensation was "making faces at me and waving at me."

The former fighter thought to himself: "What in the world is happening?"

He said: "So I just walk over there and he kind of leans in like we're going to have a conversation and his hands were in his pocket.

"I said, 'Hey, I'm not gonna play your games. Don't mess with me … Keep my name out of your mouth.'"

Cormier said it was at this point when security began to gather, which is when Paul "started to play big boy a little bit, trying to point and do all that."

Cormier then warned Paul.

"I said, 'You're gonna get yourself hurt messing around. I'm not gonna fight with you and play those public shenanigans … Keep my name out of your mouth.'

"He said, 'Well, you said my name first.' I said, 'Don't play with me. Don't play with me. I'm not a kid to me messing around with like that.'"

The 42-year-old said he wanted to "grab his face" but feared getting in trouble with his employer, the UFC.

Paul apparently kept telling him to "sign the contract" which only bemused Cormier, who claims there is no contract.

"If he actually wants to fight me … fight me in mixed martial arts"

Cormier continued by saying that he does not really want to fight Jake Paul, but won't allow him to disrespect him.

"Why would I go and box Jake Paul? Who I am doesn't make me chase anything. I made my money as the heavyweight champion of the world," he said. "I don't have to chase a payday."

"This kid wants to fight, okay, I'll fight him. But it will be a mixed martial arts competition. If he wants to actually fight with me, fight me in mixed martial arts."

He said he would even drop down from his current weight, to MMA's light heavyweight limit of 205-pounds, which is closer to where Paul weighs for his showbiz boxing bouts. Paul has previously weighed in at around the 192-pound mark.

"If you really want to fight me, like seriously fight me, fight me in mixed martial arts. This is not going to be fun. I'm telling you right now, at 42 years old, bad back and everything, I'm going to torture him and I'm going to hurt him.

"I don't want to box him, I don't want to fight in a limited skill set of rules," Cormier added, saying that he'll only fight using MMA rules.

"I'll go all the way back to 205 and I'm going to smash him and I'm going to hurt him and then he can go back to fighting these YouTube kids."

Cormier finished by saying: "I'm going to torture [him] and I'm going to rip his face apart and I'm gonna hurt the kid. I will teach these kids not to continue to do this with people like me, athletes. I will hurt the kid."