While the MMA world cast stones at Jon Jones, Frank Shamrock is proud of the 25-year-old champ for standing up to the “big bully” that is UFC President Dana White.
After Dan Henderson pulled out with an injury, White cancelled the entire UFC 151 fight card when Jones refused to accept a fight with Chael Sonnen, who offered to step in as a late replacement for the fallen main event.
It was the first event to ever be cancelled in UFC history.
White was furious that Jones didn’t take the fight. And during the conference call for UFC 151, he blasted his young champion by calling the decision “selfish and disgusting.”
Despite public opinion, wins and losses are everything in MMA. Jones has always been a methodical person. His unrivaled preparation is the main reason he is already at the cusp of all-time greatness.
According to Jones, he felt it wouldn’t be a smart move to take a fight against a different style of opponent on such short notice.
BJPenn.com recently caught up with Shamrock in an exclusive interview to get his take on Jones’ decision and White’s reaction:
I don’t know if Jones made the right decision or not, but I liked the decision. I personally don’t like Dana so I like that he stood up to him. Dana is just a big bully and a blow hard. It’s sad to see someone of Jones’ stature brought down by the President of the company. He was basically laid out and destroyed because he didn’t take one for the team. I feel bad for the fans, but fighting is fighting.
In a recent appearance on Fuel TV’s UFC Tonight White recanted on his stance that Jones is solely to blame for the collapse of UFC 151. He admitted that some fault should be forwarded towards Henderson, who knew of his injury three weeks out from the event.
The tumultuous relationship between Shamrock and White is well-documented. The two recently knocked heads over the fact that Shamrock, a highly respected legend of the sport, is constantly snubbed from the UFC Hall of Fame.
It took years for it to occur, but White was finally able to squash his beef with Tito Ortiz. Is there any hope for a possible reconciliation with Shamrock?
Shamrock continues:
I don’t see that being a possibility and I say that because I knew Dana before he bought the UFC. I knew what he was like and they made promises that things were going to be different and I didn’t sign with them. That made me a mortal enemy because I refused to sign with them. I have no intentions of going with those people who misled and tried everything to end my career.
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