Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier are forever tied to their epic rivalry, and recent events show that these two still hold animosity towards each other.
Jones and Cormier faced off at UFC 185 and UFC 214, with Jones coming out victorious in both fights. Those victories were not without controversies. Jones tested positive for cocaine use after the first fight, then was suspended for testing positive for an anabolic steroid after the rematch.
Recently, Cormier was ringside for Jones’ return as a commentator at UFC 285, where Jones won the heavyweight title by submitting Ciryl Gane via first-round guillotine choke. Considering their heated rivalry, it was not a surprise that Cormier wasn’t on the bus to celebrate Jones’ incredible performance.
Cormier used his platform on his ESPN show to begrudgingly acknowledge and snub his rival all the same. On the show, Cormier said:
“I think it’s hard to really argue the greatest of all time when Jones has now gone up to heavyweight and won the championship because of what he did at light heavyweight. I think especially with the drugs and the steroid failures and those types of things.I think when you have those things, it’s hard to call you the greatest of all time.”
Later in the show, Cormier continued to stress his point that any PED users, including Anderson Silva, weren’t big enough to bury those allegations.
No love lost between Jones and Cormier
It wouldn’t be a stretch in saying Cormier is coming across as bitter. As fans and experts laud Jones’ achievement, it once again overshadows the very same feat Cormier accomplished just a few years ago.
Cormier defeated Stipe Miocic for the heavyweight title at UFC 226, and defended the title once before back-to-back losses to Miocic.
With Gane’s shock surrender to Jones, it seems that there will never be a point in Cormier’s career where he could say he was better than his nemesis.
Jones still had one last parting shot at Cormier, who looked almost despondant at ringside following his win.
On his Twitter, Jones said of Cormier:
“My man couldn’t even pretend to smile, it was pretty funny. Asking what happened, an experience former champion and analyst suddenly not being able to identify a guillotine.”
