The injury bug has struck American Kickboxing Academy yet again.
In recent news (h/t BJPenn.com), sources close to AKA say that Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light Heavyweight champion Daniel “DC” Cormier will be unable to defend his belt opposite Jon “Bones” Jones in their rematch at UFC 197 on April 23.
First off, this a huge blow for a pay-per-view card that will now be headlined by UFC Flyweight champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and undefeated Olympic wrestler Henry Cejudo. Secondly, Jones’ road to redemption has been momentarily blocked.
Obviously we would like to wish Cormier a healthy and speedy recovery, but this is terrible news for the UFC who was hoping to re-crown one of their most lucrative stars in Jones. They will now have to look elsewhere for a replacement for Cormier, or move forward with the aforementioned Flyweight tilt.
If the mixed martial arts gods had it their way, Jones would be meeting Anthony “Rumble” Johnson at UFC 197. The two were originally scheduled to fight back at UFC 187 until Jones vacated his title due to a felony hit-and-run and was subsequently replaced by Cormier.
It also doesn’t hurt that “Rumble” recently declared himself ready to fill in at a moment’s notice.