“I guess it’s a little more motivating, but it really doesn’t bother me. I’m really aware of everything that’s happened. I took myself out of the competition being a knucklehead and I gave DC an opportunity of a lifetime to finally capture that belt… Because outside of the fact that I don’t like him, he’s really not a bad guy. Watching him, he makes a really great champion. He has a clean image, he seems like a family guy who works really hard and everything like that so me not being in there, you’d like to see a guy like DC have the belt… A part of me in a weird way, is happy that he got the opportunity. But now he’s had it long enough, I hope he enjoyed it. It’s time to pay his rental fee and get that ass whooped when I finally face him. Maybe at UFC 200.”
-Jon Jones talks about Daniel Cormier holding the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship without beating him in an interview with FoxSports.com.
Penick’s Analysis: Jones knows the reality of the situation, and Cormier understands he has to beat Jones to stake claim as the best. This is a spot where Georges St-Pierre calling a title belt simply a material thing is an accurate statement. Cormier’s the best light heavyweight when Jon Jones is out of the picture, but that’s not the case when Jones is active and competing. Until he can beat Jones, the belt just doesn’t have nearly as much meaning.
[Photo (c) Jayne Kamin-Oncea via USA Today Sports]
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