We all love the drama that comes with fighting. Two people get into a cage or a ring or what have you and slug it out within the time allowed to determine a winner.
The competition is always fun to watch, but when there’s a real rivalry behind it, it adds some spice to the matchup.
Former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Daniel ‘DC’ Cormier is part of one of the more storied rivalries in UFC history. His rivalry with current heavyweight and former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones is well-documented with fights outside of the cage, testy exchanges on the mic, and even some behind-the-scenes chatter.
Cormier, 44, sat down with fellow former champ-champ and bantamweight title challenger Henry Cejudo to talk about it all.
“I just feel like Jones is really trying to bury the hatchet with you,” Cejudo told DC on the interview.
Cormier and Jones fought each other twice. At UFC 182 Jones took the unanimous decision victory after a long and heated build up that brought out the petty in both men.
One of Cormier’s sponsors made a line of shirts for him with “Break Bones” on the front that he wore anywhere and everywhere he could. After the fight Jones put on a black shirt with gold letters that said “Unbroken”. It gets much pettier than that, but we’ll leave those examples for your YouTube search bar.
Recently Jones defeated Ciryl Gane to win the undisputed heavyweight title at UFC 285 in Las Vegas. The ending was anti-climatic and a bit unexpected so reactions varied throughout the crowd, but specially with the commentary table that consisted of Joe Rogan, Jon Anik and of course Daniel Cormier.
“Did you see what happened after the fight? Everybody’s acting like I was mad that he won. When he was finishing Ciryl his back was to me, and my reaction was the same reaction as Rogan,” Cormier said.
“But because of our history it’s like ‘oh DC’s mad’. And then he says ‘Dude couldn’t even force a smile.’ That tells you he’s ready, but he’s not quite ready. So we don’t need to force it.”
If you’re expecting for Cormier and Jones to start a podcast together anytime soon…well maybe you should just put something else on your podcast list for now. We might have a better shot at getting a reunion years from now the same way Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas did.
Google that last one. Worth a watch if you’re a basketball fan.
Cormier went on to talk about how both he and Jones went after each other’s families on the mic, in interviews and at press conferences. There was one soft spot however.
“But in the darkest moments. In the darkest moments, when his mother passed, when my father passed, he sent me a message. He really did,” Cormier said.
“And even in that moment I appreciated that.”
Maybe there is hope for two of the greatest to ever get into the octagon will one day sit down and chop it up to talk about one of the greatest rivalries in MMA history.
Watch Henry Cejudo and Daniel Cormier talk about it all below.
