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Daniel Cormier Has No Sympathy for Stripped UFC Champion Jon Jones

Dana White Targeting Daniel Cormier vs. Jon Jones 2 for April

It’s no secret that Daniel Cormier and former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones don’t like each other. Their back-and-forth banter began when Cormier was in the Strikeforce promotion competing as a heavyweight and stated his intentions to drop to the light heavyweight division to take Jones’ title.

The animosity between the two came to a head during a press conference in the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino lobby in Las Vegas on Aug. 4, 2014. Cormier shoved Jones during the customary face off and a brawl broke out that resulted in both fighters being fined by the Nevada Athletic Commission and disciplinary action by the fight promotion.

The intense rivalry led up to their eventual showdown at UFC 182 in January. Jones defeated Cormier, handing the Olympian his first career loss.

Jones was stripped of his title after his alleged involvement in a hit-and-run incident on April 27 that left a pregnant motorist injured. It wasn’t Jones’ first brush with the law and Cormier has no sympathy for the fallen champion.

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“Do I feel different toward Jones? No. I feel bad for his family and the people around him, but he’s making these decisions. I think it’s time for people to stop feeling sorry for this guy and make him realize that he has to get things done the right way. By feeling sorry for Jones, it’s almost like you enable the guy to continue to do bad things,” said Cormier during the UFC 187 open workouts.

“I don’t feel sorry for him. I feel sorry for the people closest to him because these decisions don’t just affect Jon. They affect everyone around him. So no, I don’t feel sorry for Jon. I feel sorry for the lady that he hit in the car that has a baby coming. I feel sorry for his parents who have to wake up every morning and see those types of things in the media. I don’t feel sorry for him. He did this,” added Cormier.

“DC” emphasized that people should not be focused on Jones’ fighting career and turn their attention and hopes toward Jones becoming a better human being.

“If there’s anything that I take from this with Jones is he has an issue. He has some demons. Not only because of this incident, but because of past incidents — and even the failed test before I fought. This is arguably the biggest fight of your career and a month before you’re doing these types of things,” said Cormier.

“I think what we need to focus more on is him becoming a better person and fixing himself. None of us should sit here and worry about Jon Jones the athlete. You should worry about Jon Jones the person because that’s what’s important right now,” continued Cormier. “He has some demons and some issues he needs to take care of on that front before he can get back to all of this. This will always be here waiting for him.”

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