Daniel Cormier expects Jon Jones to succeed at heavyweight. But for those who think the former light heavyweight champ will run roughshod over the UFC’s biggest division, he invites them to look at the past.
Cormier said Jones “struggled” previously with bigger opponents and could see some tough challenges ahead. Before, “Bones” has to make his heavyweight debut.
” I think he will be fine,” Cormier stated on Chris Weidman’s Sirius XM Podcast. “The guy’s a good fighter. Very talented. He’s a very talented heavyweight fighter. It’s just a matter of his making that leap. We feel like we have been waiting for this moment in time.
” I think that the time he actually jumps into the heavyweight category, it will make it much more fun, make it grow and make it even better. Just a few of the matches he could participate in with Francis Ngannou, Ciryl Gane, and Curtis Blaydes make for a great idea for some major fights .”
” I think that the time he actually makes the jump in the HW division will be a lot more enjoyable. “
Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) discusses what Jon Jones brings to an already exciting HW division.
DC’s FULL convo w/ @chrisweidman https://t.co/OCb0Z2gJDa pic.twitter.com/SEybw4crcm
— MMA on SiriusXM (@MMAonSiriusXM) December 19, 2022
Jones has added bulk to his frame since relinquishing the light heavyweight title in anticipation of a move to heavyweight. In his previous division, Cormier and the 6-5 Alexander Gustafsson were among the opponents to give him tougher fights, though he still managed to adjust and stop them both in rematches.
Ngannou, Gane and Blaydes all clock in at 6-4 and carry the natural bulk of fighters for their division. They have a lot of experience fighting heavyweights in the Octagon.
When Cormier looks at the competitive landscape above 205 pounds, he sees established and emerging threats such as Sergei Pavlovich. He said that all of them could cause Jones problems.
“Watching Pavlovich, after watching what he did to Tai Tuivasa and everybody recently, there’s some dangerous fights for him, especially when you look back on his light heavyweight career and see how he struggled at times with bigger guys,” Cormier said. He’ll make a great addition to our roster, and I believe there are some major-time matches for him .”
He did his greatest work in the heavyweight category before moving down to light-heavyweight. Jones was the only obstacle to his path to the title. He later moved up to heavyweight and captured the belt from Stipe Miocic after ceding it in a rematch, and he retired after a trilogy loss.
Jones was once a two-division champ and asked if he is better than most people believe. Cormier said Jones’ past with anti-doping violations should “absolutely” factor into his status as an all-time great, but he said the ex-champ’s accomplishments could not be discounted.
“If he’s beatable, why hasn’t anybody beaten him? He’s long, he’s strong, he’s got good cardio, and he’s got a lot of great qualities in there,” Cormier told Weidman. He’s extremely smart in the Octagon. This is one area where people give Jones credit. His mentality, fight intelligence, his ability process through fights are better than many, and that’s probably why he has the longevity that he did .”
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Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2022/12/20/23519611/daniel-cormier-jon-jones-at-heavyweight-will-be-fun-but-adds-he-struggled-at-times-with-bigger-guys?rand=96749
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