Jon Jones has seemingly given up hope of a “friendship” with Daniel Cormier, repeatedly calling his former opponent an “asshole” while reflecting on their time filming a reality television show together.
Jones and Cormier are coaching opposing teams of fighters on the ALF show, eight years after the second and final UFC showdown of their bitter UFC rivalry.
Advertisement
In 2015, Jones outpointed his fellow American to retain the light-heavyweight title, before seemingly dethroning Cormier in a 2017 rematch – only for the result to be overturned after Jones failed a drug test. One year prior, the rematch had been delayed due to a previous failed drug test by Jones.
Their rivalry also included a brawl and numerous personal insults, yet Jones said this week that he hoped filming this show with Cormier could result in an unlikely “friendship”. Even Cormier, 46, admitted that being around Jones, 38, was “not nearly as nasty” as it once was.
But now, Jones has backtracked, telling Red Corner MMA: “I think if you really get to know Daniel Cormier, he’s an asshole. He was an asshole. He didn’t really connect with any of the fighters here. He’s just an asshole.
“I tried to make peace with him many times, but he made it very clear that he wants to be enemies for the rest of his life, because of how lucrative it is.
Advertisement
“There’s moments where we got to laugh, but for the most part, he’s a d***head. You look at the way he treats his staff members. He brought like 10 ‘yes men’ out with him and literally [told them]: ‘Go get me my water […] Where’s my this? Why is that this?’ He just bosses guys around.
Jon Jones (left) in an overturned win against Daniel Cormier in 2017 (Getty)
“The times we weren’t filming, he wasn’t very sociable with the people on set. He’s just a d***head. I think people that really work with him know that.”
Not every fan will side with Jones, however, given his own chequered past. Jones has failed numerous drug tests – for performance-enhancing and recreational substances – while away from the cage, he has been charged with multiple crimes.
Advertisement
Amid the filming of the ALF show, Cormier talked up his chances of beating Jones in a wrestling contest, to which Jones has now said: “If I wrestled against Daniel Cormier, it would be really interesting to see what happened. I can’t definitively say what would happen in the sport of wrestling.
Jones and Cormier after their 2017 rematch (Getty)
“The one thing I do know is I made him cry in front of the world. I took him off the list of being considered one of the greatest fighters of all time […] He’ll just always be in my shadow one way or another.”
In 2023, Jones emulated Cormier by winning the UFC heavyweight title, becoming a two-weight champion like his compatriot.
Advertisement
Cormier retired in 2020 after a title-fight defeat by Stipe Miocic, while Jones retired last summer and vacated the heavyweight belt in the process. However, he has since expressed a desire to compete at the UFC’s planned White House event this summer.
