Once in a while, Daniel Cormier does say some nice things about his most bitter rival, Jon Jones. The former dual-weight world champion and the current heavyweight champion had one of the most fierce and entertaining rivalries in UFC history. It was such an intense rivalry that both of the fighters held a grudge against each other even after Cormier retired from the sport. Well, years have passed since then and the animosity seems to have watered down. On his most recent escapade, ‘DC’ came forward with some appreciative words for the heavyweight champion, which seemed to have irked some within the fighting community.

In a candid conversation, Daniel Cormier surprised Mike Bohn by ranking Jon Jones as the third top personality of 2024 during an MMA Junkie interview. The former dual-weight champion even gave his reasoning behind his decision, “I’m gonna go with Jon Jones. Jon Jones is a massive superstar. Imagine the amount of time he has spent at the top of the sport—he has literally lived through three generations of fighters, and he still headlined Madison Square Garden. It was not only that, though, why I say he made an impact,” said Cormier.

He further added, “He made an impact by beating the greatest fighter of all time, and he made it look easy. He made an impact by saying he wasn’t gonna fight Tom Aspinall, by dragging him along. He is in complete control of the narrative, and everybody followed that narrative. So yeah, I got Jon Jones at number three. He has been able to truly control the sport, and he has been doing it [for] thirteen years in the game. It’s impossible to see, so yeah, I got Jones at number three.”

Jon Jones’s victory against two-time heavyweight champion, Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 was nothing short of a spectacle. This fight not only legitimized his standing within the heavyweight division but also raked in a massive $16.6M in gate sales for the promotion. Jones’s emergence as the heavyweight champion might have put the entire division at a halt but Dana White and the UFC aren’t complaining because he does good business for the company.

Regardless, it was quite shocking for fans to see Cormier choosing Jones as his most influential figure considering their rivalry. Let’s see what they had to say.

Daniel Cormier’s words of praise for Jon Jones didn’t align with the MMA fans

Stipe Miocic was out of the game for three years after his last loss against Francis Ngannou back in 2021 and his clash against Jon Jones was his first serious encounter after that. A social media fan is quite confused as to why Jones’s victory over Miocic is celebrated, “He beat a 42 year old washed up Stipe, Why is he making it sound like that’s impressive??” Adding to the same context, a social media user asserted that it was quite a known fact that Jones would emerge victorious in his bout against Miocic due to the inactivity, “Respectfully he had one fight, and we all knew the result before the bell rang. Alex won 2024.” 

Furthermore, a social media user appears to be ruthless against Daniel Cormier’s statement, perhaps alluding to other figures in the sport who made big impacts like Alex Pereira, Ilia Topuria, or Max Holloway even, “This is such a dumb take.” But, wait, who’s on Cormier’s actual list? Well ‘DC’ had Dana White, Alex Pereira, Jon Jones, Conor McGregor, and Hunter Campbell as 2024’s most influential figures in the UFC.

Furthermore, a social media user gave a reality check to Jon Jones, “I thought Stipe wasn’t [as] washed as I assumed he would be. He lost yes, that was obvious regardless. But if you look at the fight Jones showed nothing, he should [have] demolished Stipe. He was slow and no way he’d move like that against Tom Aspinall.” 

Jon Jones is arguably one of the greatest light-heavyweights of all time and his resume speaks volumes but he has yet to prove his caliber within the heavyweight division, especially against the top contenders like Tom Aspinall. A social media user highlighted the same thing, “Lets be honest he’s not undefeated and he’s “undefeated” in LHW. He’s new to heavyweight and beating someone who has no ground game and someone who’s 42 years old. come on man..”

Last but not least, a social media user was a bit concerned that Daniel Cormier only had minutes of conversation with Mike, “DC giving only giving 6 minutes to the goat journalist, what is this!!! DC better respect the man!” 

Fans feeling opposed to Daniel Cormier’s views on Jon Jones shouldn’t come as a surprise, as the latter has drawn the ire of the fighting community for his antics. His refusal to fight interim champion Tom Aspinall also doesn’t do him any favors in terms of getting in the fandom’s good books. Regardless, what’s your take on Cormier’s comments, and do you buy Jon Jones’ influence on the sport in 2024? Let us know in the comments down below.