We may have seen the end of the long-standing rivalry between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier.
There was a moment in time when Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier were the fiercest of rivals. Tirades were personal and included death threats. The two even went at it during a media conference leading up to their first meeting in 2015 and had to be restrained to prevent another brewing brawl ahead of their 2017 rematch.
These days, Cormier is entering his third year in retirement while Jones is preparing for his much-talked-about heavyweight debut in March. “Bones” first tweeted this out, welcoming the possibility of his now-former rival doing commentary duties for his UFC 285 heavyweight title fight with Ciryl Gane.
DC you are more than welcome to commentate at my fight, I think you are really good at what you do. I trust that you would be non-biased. All the best brother
— BONY (@JonnyBones) February 15, 2023
Cormier got wind of Jones’ compliments about him and responded through a video he uploaded on his YouTube channel.
“It seems as though Jones now is maturing. He seems to be taking a much different approach to the build to the fight and how he’s approaching everything. But it feels nice for him to acknowledge, ‘I think this guy can do me justice.’ Even with everything.”
Jones later posted this follow-up tweet.
In all seriousness DC, I’m cool with you bro. I recognize the man you are, I wasn’t lying when I said those things in my post fight interview. Outside of us being fierce competitors I dig the way you represent yourself, the wrestling community, our community, and our sport
— BONY (@JonnyBones) February 17, 2023
UFC 285 happens on March 4th, headlined by Jones and Gane. At the co-main event is a flyweight championship bout between Valentina Shevchenko and Alexa Grasso.
About the author: Milan Ordoñez has been covering combat sports since 2012 and has been part of the Bloody Elbow staff since 2016. He’s also competed in amateur mixed martial arts and submission grappling tournaments. (full bio)