Daniel Cormier Out of UFC 197 | UFC Betting Sites

UFC 197 Predictions: Someone Picked Henry Cejudo To Knock Out ‘Mighty Mouse’

Jon Jones vs. Ovince St. Preux: Mike Drahota: Jon Jones is finally back, and he’s arguably in the best shape of his legendary MMA career. Time will tell if he can get past his out-of-cage struggles to regain his previously long-held UFC light heavyweight title belt, but he’s never really had much trouble winning fights

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Jon Jones vs. Ovince St. Preux:

Mike Drahota:

Jon Jones is finally back, and he’s arguably in the best shape of his legendary MMA career. Time will tell if he can get past his out-of-cage struggles to regain his previously long-held UFC light heavyweight title belt, but he’s never really had much trouble winning fights in the Octagon. He’s obviously not fighting arch rival champion Daniel Cormier, but late replacement St. Preux has some unorthodox striking and lethal knockout power, and Jones has had trouble with one other similarly sized opponent in Alexander Gustafsson. However, ‘OSP’ has also been handled thoroughly by touted grapplers Glover Teixeira and Ryan Bader. MMA math may not be the best deciding factor, but I still see Jones winning this by second-round submission.

Rory Kernaghan:

Jon Jones faces a dangerous fighter in Ovince Saint Preux, but in all honesty nothing new. With all due respect to OSP, I simply don’t feel he belongs in the octagon with Jones at this stage in his career. Truthfully, “Bones” is without doubt one of the greatest fighters of all time, even with all of the legal trouble going on in his personal life. The reach of Jones is a problem for any fighter, and I think he’ll be using it to fire nasty oblique kicks to keep his distance early on. I expect the former champion to utilize his nasty elbow attacks to wear down on St. Preux, eventually leading to a grizzly end. Again, no disrespect to OSP, but Jones is going to feed him some punishment. Jon Jones by TKO round three.

Mike Henken:

Jones has looked like an absolute monster in preparing for his return despite having to deal with a late opponent change just a few weeks prior to his fight. With that being said, I just don’t see many ways that St. Preux can challenge Jones. OSP is an elite level athlete with serious knockout power, but “Bones” is the best in the world, and possibly the best of all-time for a reason. I expect him to pick St. Preux apart on the feet before finishing the fight on the ground. Jones by third-round submission.

Demetrious Johnson vs. Henry Cejudo:

Mike Drahota:

There’s little doubt that Cejudo provides a new and perhaps more challenging test as “Mighty Mouse” attempts to inch his way closer to Anderson Silva’s UFC title defense record, but for all of the hype that heaped upon Cejudo for his Olympic wrestling gold medal, he hasn’t shown me all that much in the Octagon. Yes, his striking is sufficient and his takedowns will always be a threat, but he’s still seeking his first UFC stoppage and is arguably facing the No.1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Johnson has simply transcended 125 pounds in recent years, and has a variety of amazing finishes as he’s seemingly toyed with his opponents. Cejudo is very tough and may very well put up more of a fight than most, but I just don’t think he’s ready to take on a challenge like Johnson. “Mighty Mouse” by unanimous decision.

Rory Kernaghan:

Demetrious Johnson is another extremely dominant force, but is flying under the radar once again for his fight with Henry Cejudo. The former Olympian is a tremendous athlete, but does he have the MMA pedigree to take out such a superb fighter in ‘Mighty Mouse?’ Many would argue the contrary, but I find myself a little stuck on this pick. Cejudo is one of very few fighters who could potentially keep the pace of Johnson all five rounds, but the champion’s footwork and overall well rounded game is just so advanced and technical. I feel an upset coming in this fight, and I don’t often go with my gut, but I just sense that ‘Mighty Mouse’ is going to get caught with a big shot here. I know it’s against all the odds and the physics of this match up, but someone has to go for the underdog. Cejudo knocks out ‘Mighty Mouse’ in round one.

Mike Henken:

In my opinion, “Mighty Mouse” Johnson is one of the best fighters on the planet, although possibly not receiving the credit he deserves. The reigning flyweight boss seemingly does everything perfect, being able to strike from numerous stances as well as being able to transition effortlessly between takedowns and submission attempts. Despite being criticized for the ‘lack’ of competition he’s faced, “Mighty Mouse” has no easy task in Cejudo, an undefeated mixed martial artist and an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling. “The Messenger” has also improved his striking, but I don’t see it being enough to dethrone the king. Johnson by unanimous decision.

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Countdown To UFC 197: Jon Jones vs. Ovince St. Preux

With last night’s UFC on FOX 19 from Tampa, Florida, in the books, the focus of the MMA world will immediately shift to next weekend’s awaited UFC 197 pay-per-view (PPV) event on April 23 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the main event, legendary former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones will

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In the main event, legendary former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones will finally make his long-awaited return from a lengthy legal battle against impromptu challenger Ovince. St. Preux for the interim belt after his originally scheduled grudge rematch with Daniel Cormier fell apart when “DC” injured his leg in training.

To get fan excited for the return of all-time great “Bones,” the customary Countdown to UFC 197: Jones vs. St. Preux was released on FOX Sports 1 this evening. Check it out here:

In the co-main event, decorated flyweight Demetrious Johnson will fight for his unprecedented eight straight 125-pound defense when he battle touted Olympic gold medalist wrestler Henry Cejudo. Check out the full Countdown to UFC 197: Johnson vs. Cejudo right here:

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‘Bones’ Quote: I’ll Fight Daniel Cormier In His Living Room

Former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones’ long-awaited rematch with current champion Daniel Cormier may have been unceremoniously scrapped from next weekend’s (Sat., April 23, 2016) UFC 197 from Las Vegas exactly two weeks ago, yet even though ‘Bones’ will now take on Ovince St. Preux, it would seem as if at least some of his

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With MMA finally being signed into legalization in Jones’ home state of New York this week, the illustrious but troublesome legend not surprisingly aimed for the UFC’s anticipated New York debut at Madison Square Garden as the location of his inevitable grudge with Cormier, who is dealing with a foot injury for the next two months.

Blasting the champ during today’s (Fri., April, 15, 2016) UFC 197 media conference call (via MMA Fighting), Jones threw a barb at ‘DC’ by saying while he probably wouldn’t fight him in New York, he’d be wiling to take him on anywhere:

“Yeah, I would be honored to main event against Daniel Cormier at Madison Square Garden. The question is, you know will Daniel Cormier accept that fight. Daniel Cormier has had a lot of mental struggles when it comes to me and uh…” (laughs) “…that’s just one more thing that he doesn’t need. I’m sure he doesn’t want to fight me in my backyard, because he needs all the mental breaks he can get.

“So, who knows. I doubt he’d fight me at Madison Square Garden. But like I said, I’ll fight him wherever. The Oklahoma State wrestling room, his living room, whatever.”

Jones then turned his attention to the expected hot topic of his legal troubles outside the cage, where he was arrested on felony hit-and-run charges in Albuquerque last year before landing in jail for violating the probation he received for the first offense by supposedly drag racing after practice recently.

The decorated champ, who lost his belt only due to his personal trouble, showed a bit of confidence — or arrogance, depending on your point of view — by stating that he’s already a hall of famer who can only stop himself be getting into hot water outside of the Octagon, a view that is hard to argue with:

“Only thing I need to do is just right things outside the Octagon,” he said. “I could never fight again and be put in the hall of fame. I’m not saying that to sound arrogant, but we all know it’s true. I have to do the right things outside the Octagon. That’s it. Nobody hearing my name in the news ever again, that’s a huge victory for me, and I’m going to try my hardest to make sure that happens.

“Outside of that, when it comes to actually fighting, I don’t really feel like I have much to prove to anybody. I’ve done some pretty amazing things in this sport, and fighting is a journey. You have your ups and downs, you have your wins and losses, and fortunately I’ve never lost. But wins and losses at this point in my life doesn’t really define who I am. I think I’m a champion the rest of my life. What goes into defining who I am is how I get my life under control outside of fighting.”

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Quote: Jon Jones Now Has A Full-Time Driver

Following a week-long windfall of absolute frenzy surrounding Jon Jones’ latest vehicle-related offense, it looks like the oft-troubled former UFC champion has finally gotten himself the driver everyone believes he should have years ago. After he was ticketed for five separate misdemeanor offenses including drag racing in Albuquerque, New Mexico two weeks ago, Jones was

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After he was ticketed for five separate misdemeanor offenses including drag racing in Albuquerque, New Mexico two weeks ago, Jones was arrested for a probation violation of the 18-month term he was handed for the now-infamous hit-and-run charges that dealt a 25-year-old pregnant woman a broken arm in 2015. Jones was ordered to do 60 additional hours of community service and attend anger management and driving courses, yet the collective MMA world just didn’t seem to believe he would be able to stay out of trouble behind the wheel, and for good reason.

However, news has arrived today that his team has taken a big step to at least preventing that from happening before his short-notice interim title fight against Ovince St. Preux at UFC 197. According to Jones’ longtime head coach Greg Jackson on today’s edition of The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Jones finally now has a driver and has a singular focus on the fight game alone:

“He’s really focused. It was an unfortunate situation with everybody kind of being at fault a bit, but ultimately the responsibility is Jon’s. So it was a bad situation, but he came out of there really focused, really positive. That’s the thing with Jon, as long as he’s razor focused, he’s a force to be reckoned with, and he’s really focused right now. It was not a very good thing, but he’s not physically injured, he doesn’t have anything wrong, he just, he made a mistake and maybe said things he shouldn’t have, yeah it was just a bad situation all-around. He got in trouble, refocused, and came out. That’s the part I like. He’s got a driver now, so everything should be fine.”

Jackson reiterated that Jones’ driver is a full-time one when questioned by Helwani, noting that he now needs to rise above the media circus his life has become and fixate his sights on becoming the champ once again:

“Oh yeah. Yeah, I just want him to focus on fighting. That’s what he needs to worry about. The rest of the circus, he needs to not be distracted by. He’s a warrior and he needs to focus on that.”

So Jones has finally hired the driver that could have presumably saved him so much money, bad publicity, and most importantly, legal trouble as he attempts to rebuild both his public persona and his fighting career.

Will it matter, or is ‘Bones’ simply too far gone down the path of a heel to return?

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Daniel Cormier Offers To Pay For Ovince St. Preux To Train At AKA

With less than three weeks left until fight time, April 23’s UF 297 pay-per-view from Las Vegas was dealt a severe bow when it was recently revealed that Daniel Cormier was forced out of his awaited championship unification rematch with former champion Jon Jones due to a foot injury. With precious few top level contenders

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With precious few top level contenders available to fight the dominant ‘Bones,’ who has been out of action dealing with legal troubles since a telling decision win over Cormier in the main event of January 2015’s UFC 182, No. 6-ranked Ovince St. Preux was the only man willing to fill on short notice.

Nearly everyone has tabbed Jones to run through ‘OSP’ with ease, and the oddsmakers agreed by setting ‘Bones’ up as the understandable massive favorite. St. Preux has won seven of his nine total UFC bouts but has obviously never faced an opponent the caliber of all-time great Jones, so during an appearance on today’s edition of The MMA Hour, Cormier extended a very interesting offer to the Tennessee-based combatant to potentially help him win:

“I think that everybody has a shot, but you know, I think there’s a chance for Ovince to have a better shot, and it’s up to him to take it. You know, and that’s by coming here. You know, we’ll open our doors to him to come and train at the American Kickboxing Academy. I don’t care what happens in the future; I can’t train with him, but I’ve got a guy named Cain Velasquez that can train with him, I’ve got a guy named Luke Rockhold that can train with him, I’ve got a guy named Chi Lewis-Perry, got a guy named Frank Munoz; we have everything in place where he can just take my training camp for the next few weeks. Take my training camp, we will take care of it. We’ll fly Ovince and his team out here, we’ll put ‘em up, give ‘em a place to stay, because no one in this gym wants to see Jon Jones not have to fight a tough fight on April 23.”

It is quite the odd offer considering that ‘OSP’ would face Cormier for the light heavyweight championship if he did somehow beat Jones as ‘DC’ is rooting for. Training at his home gym of AKA would certainly give Cormier and his team a leg up on St. Preux’s tendencies, making it a win-win kind of scenario for ‘DC’ as he plots out his recovery and return to the Octagon.

Cormier acknowledged that for him to make another massive payday for the rematch against Jones, the troubled but still legendary has to look good defeating ‘OSP,’ yet he’s still willing to help give St. Preux a better chance to win:

“For my pocketbook, Jon needs to go out there and look great, but we want to give Ovince a chance, and every guy on my team, they’re willing to play a part in that.”

‘DC’ expounded on those feelings, noting that he would even be one of St. Preux’s coaches if and when he decide to take over his training camp, which Cormier described as finally reaching the perfect mix to break ‘Bones’:

“I’ll be one of his coaches. Listen, nobody wants to fight Jon Jones worse than I do. So if I can live through Ovince on April 23, I will live through Ovince on April 23. He can take my training camp. I thought that we had, finally the perfect mixture of what we needed in order for our preparations, so yes, Ovince can have my training camp, all paid for right out of my checking account. Ovince St. Preux, if you want to come to San Jose bud, you have a team in the American Kickboxing Academy that’s ready to support you.”

As for his own health, Cormier described his foot injury, which is a ligament issue, and also noted he would going to have stem cells put in his knee that has a torn ACL in addition to receiving treatment for a shoulder issue. Despite the injuries, however, he reassured fans he would do everything he can to get back into the cage as soon as possible:

“I’m pretty beat up right now as you would expect when you’re in the middle of a hard training camp, but I will do everything in my power to get back as soon as I can.”

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Dana White Reacts To UFC 197 Interim Belt: Jones Never Lost His Title

The MMA world is still collectively digesting the news that light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier was forced out of his long-awaited rematch with Jon Jones at UFC 197 and replaced by Ovince St. Preux, who will now meet ‘Bones’ for the interim title in the main event of the April 23 card from Las Vegas.

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The MMA world is still collectively digesting the news that light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier was forced out of his long-awaited rematch with Jon Jones at UFC 197 and replaced by Ovince St. Preux, who will now meet ‘Bones’ for the interim title in the main event of the April 23 card from Las Vegas.

News came soon after that Cormier would have a recovery time of roughly 4-8 weeks and would be able to return in roughly August or September, putting a possible rescheduling of their drawn-out rivalry at July’s UFC 200 on the shelf.

But Cormier won’t necessarily be out for that long, and we’ve obviously seen other champions — such as his AKA teammate and former heavyweight kingpin Cain Velasquez — hold up their respective divisions for far longer without an interim belt being created. That made the call to create one here a bit of a puzzling decision, but UFC President Dana White clarified it on ESPN’s SportsCenter by focusing on the fact that Jones never lost his belt in the cage:

“It will [be for the interim title]. It will still be the main event. It will be five rounds for the light heavyweight interim title. Jon has never lost his title in the Octagon. He was stripped of his title because of problems outside. We think it’s the right thing to do. It’s not [Jones’] fault Cormier is injured. He will fight for the interim light heavyweight title and then when Cormier comes back, they’ll decide who the real champ is.”

White is of course referring to the tenuous situation when Jones was unceremoniously stripped of his title and suspended for his arrest on felony hit-and-run charges in Albuquerque, New Mexico, that left a 25-year-old pregnant woman injured and Jones out of his anticipated UFC 187 match-up with Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson.

Jones also had quite the lengthy legal issue this week when a traffic stop resulted in him being jailed for a probation violation of the terms he was sentenced to for the hit-and-run charges, but all of that seems like sort of an afterthought now that Cormier is out of UFC 197.

Cormier has never pulled out of a fight in the UFC or any promotion before now, so the creation of an interim title does seem a bit arbitrary and unnecessary given that it’s little more than a symbolic gestured created to assign importance to the short-notice main event.

With Cormier poised to return sometime later this summer or early fall, it should be expected that his bout with Jones will be re-booked for the UFC’s anticipated Madison Square Garden debut late this year. That is, unless ‘OSP’ somehow shocks the world at UFC 197.

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