UFC Light-Heavyweight Champion, Daniel ‘DC’ Cormier has pulled out of one of the most highly-anticipated rematches in UFC history against former champion Jon ‘Bones’ Jones. The two were set to meet in the main event in Las Vegas on the 23rd April for the title, but a reported leg injury to Cormier has forced the 37-year-old to miss the bout. Dangerous contender, Ovince Saint Preux has subsequently replaced the champion on short notice, and will take on Jones for the Interim title at UFC 197.
Jones (21-1) and Cormier (17-1) met back at UFC 182 in a heated contest, which saw Jones retain his title with a unanimous decision. He was later stripped due to a number of personal reasons including drug suspensions and legal matters, keeping him out of action since January of last year.
As a result Cormier was given the opportunity to fight for the vacant 205 lbs strap against Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson, and was successful in doing so to become the current UFC Light Heavyweight champion, signaling the start of a heated exchange between the two. A string of post-fight interviews from DC were aimed at Jones, encouraging him to ‘get his s*** together’, thus setting the foundations of a rematch between the two.
Cormier has had his say in the matter and even went as far as offering his replacement, Saint Preux the opportunity to train alongside his team, all expenses paid, in a seemingly desperate attempt to topple the #1 ranked pound-for-pound MMA fighter in Jones.
Jones, 27, has been extremely vocal in expressing his feelings towards ‘DC’, stating, ‘Daniel is a coward who will never beat me’, according to The MMA Hour.
He added, ‘Him inviting OSP (Saint Preux) to his training camp shows me that he’s so grateful that he’s not fighting me in three weeks’.
Cormier responded to the hype surrounding the challenger, telling Fox Sports, “I don’t think he’s that clever… So I think we’re giving him a little more credit than he deserves… I think we might be overestimating his smarts a little bit”.
The war of words has since spilled over to Twitter with both men exchanging a number of personal insults including DC labelling his rival as a ‘Junkie’ due to a cocaine-related suspension received by Jones prior to the first contest.
After such a controversial build-up, it is hugely disappointing that we will not see the rematch right now, as the stakes are so high. Yet still, Jones make his long-awaited return to the octagon for the first time in over a year against a very dangerous and able opponent in OSP. If he is successful, it seems a certainty that the two will collide some point in the future. We can guarantee there will be no love lost in what would be quite possibly, the biggest fight in the UFC’s light heavyweight division