Despite his long-standing and intense rivalry with Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier does have sympathy for “Bones” after the visibly dejected fighter proclaimed his innocence during a press conference (see it) to explain his side of his United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) violation.
During the presser, Jones apologized to Cormier after he was pulled from their scheduled title fight, which was set to headline UFC 200 this past Saturday night (July 9, 2016) in Las Vegas, Nevada. During “DC’s” recent guest spot on “The MMA Hour,” he acknowledged seeing the conference, revealing that he did accepts his rival’s apology.
Check it out:
“I’m in the sauna and we’re listening to it and he seemed very sad. I went back to my room before my final wight cut and I actually watched it and I could see that he was heartbroken. So, it was very sad man. I don’t like to see people hurt like that, and I could see that he was hurt. I try to do things for me — things that feel better for me and for my mental and me as a human being and spirit. So I just made sure he knew that his apology was accepted and that I do wish him the best in his journey.”
And you still boo this man?
Jones’ B-sample also came back positive, which didn’t help his case trying to clear his name for the time being. That said, what exactly he tested positive for has not been made public … at least not confirmed.
For Cormier, he will hold off judgement until then, but says if “Bones” is found to have been using performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), then it will be clear that he tried to gain an edge against him.
“I don’t know. When everything comes out we will know better. If it comes out that he was doing performance enhancers, then he was obviously trying to cheat. I mean, I can only be honest. I call it like it is. If it comes out that he was doing performance enhancers; I don’t know if it was because the ‘OSP’ fight didn’t go as he expected, I don’t know. I don’t know what it was that made him do whatever he did if it comes out that he was doing performance enhancers.”
Thankfully, not all was lost for Cormier, as Anderson Silva agreed to step in on two days notice to face him at UFC 200. “DC” eventually went on to dominate “The Spider” for three rounds to earn a unanimous decision victory (highlights) and an all-important payday.
To see how much Cormier earned here.
As for Jones, it remains to be seen what will of the former Light Heavyweight champion of the world, as he will have to go through a lengthy and tedious process with USADA before he can step back into the Octagon. In the meantime, the show will continue to go on and the 205-pound division will be led by Cormier.
It’s a task he’s gladly put on his shoulders thanks to Jones’ previous transgressions.
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