“I was just trying to reach out to him…and he just decided that there wouldn’t be a friendship between us,” reminisced Jon Jones in 2010, about his first meeting with Daniel Cormier earlier that year. Soon after, a fierce rivalry unfolded, with the duo badmouthing each other whenever they got a chance. However, as tides have changed, so have emotions, with DC recently extending an olive branch with his words of appreciation. But before we get to that…

To give you some backstory: Cormier and Jones first met during the UFC 121 back in 2010 when Jones caught up to the Olympic wrestler, backstage. However, as people say, first impressions matter, which the then 23-year-old failed to make. Walking up to DC, Jones had reportedly said he didn’t exactly who he was talking to. “He’s another black guy in the sport, and I felt the need to say hello to him, and I was just like ‘hey man, I hear you’re a great wrestler’ and all this stuff, and he’s like ‘Yeah, yeah, you don’t know who I am?’ I’m like ‘No I don’t know who you are, but my coaches were telling me that you wrestle on the Olympic level.’ And I was like ‘I bet you that I could take you down’,” Bones revealed in a conversation with Bloody Elbow. As expected, this didn’t go down with the then 31-year-old.

Taking their rivalry a notch higher, the duo even engaged in a public brawl ahead of their UFC 178 bout in 2014. During the media hype event, amid stare downs and insults, Cormier shoved Jones in the throat, which ended up with the two fighters off the stage, being separated by security—Jones was later fined $50,000 and 40 hours of community service, while Cormier got a $9,000 penalty, with 20 hours of community service.

However, as the UFC Heavyweight champion nears his retirement—before one last bout against Stipe Miocic at the UFC 309 on November 16, Cormier couldn’t help but give him a worthy parting gift. In a conversation with Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo on the Pound 4 Pound podcast, the 45-year-old said, “He’s so much smarter than people give him credit for, and he’s tough. He’s way tougher than people give him credit for.” Earlier, Cejudo had even went to the extent of mentioning how the UFC community has “never seen an athlete” like Jon.

This truly caught the attention of the heavyweight champion. The veteran fighter shared a clip of the interview on his Instagram Story and thanked them for the praise with a praying hands emoji: “🙏🏻” Notably, the two fighters have locked horns twice till date: The first time at UFC 182 on January 3, 2015, which Jones won by unanimous decision. Their second bout came in the UFC 214, on July 29, 2017, which Cormier lost again, before the decision was overturned (No Contest) after Jones was suspended for failed drug tests.

The words must’ve truly inspired the heavyweight, who hasn’t seen action since capturing the belt with a first-round submission over Ciryl Gane in March 2023. But the praise was not limited to the few words shared by Usman and Cormier, as Cejudo too shared an anecdote that proves Jones’ humble nature.

Henry Cejudo is all praise for the MMA great

After Daniel Cormier and Kamaru Usman were done talking about Jon Jones, Cejudo chimed in with his experience of meeting the consensus MMA GOAT – “He came to me on six different occasions. Always showed up on time, was always all eyes and ears, ‘Yes coach.’ I’m just like, ‘Damn Jones, we’re f*cked. You can just call me… you know, you’re 100% right, man.”

Cejudo further added that Jones is as competitive as they get and that he understands the game. The former UFC champion also made a major claim stating, “I think that’s what makes Jon Jones better than the rest. He’s a better competitor than he is an actual fighter.”

Now, ‘Bones’ is all geared up to face Miocic for a much-awaited bout (although not as awaited as the dream fight against Tom Aspinall). However, ‘Bones’ is reluctant to face interim champion Tom Aspinall to unify the belts, as he currently ranks third in the UFC pound-for-pound rankings. What do you think? Is Jon Jones the MMA GOAT? Let us know in the comments.