Daniel Cormier and Jon Jones don’t have a friendly history with each other, but that won’t stop the former two-division UFC champion from understanding the position of his most hated rival.

The legacy of Jones can’t be told without the inclusion of his numerous run-ins with the law. Therefore by default, several stories and opinions have surrounded these instances over the years involving the former two-time UFC light heavyweight kingpin.

Jones’ most recent incident came the morning following his induction into the UFC Hall of Fame in Sept. 2021 when he got into an alleged domestic violence situation involving his then-fiance. Among those reacting to the news since then has been Jones’ former challenger, Chael Sonnen.

Sonnen now finds himself amid his own case which alleges he assaulted several individuals in a Las Vegas hotel hallway. Thus opening “The American Gangster” up to some shots back from Jones who has often been the target of critique.

“Fellas, are we adults, or are we children?” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “What happened to turning the other cheek? What happened to taking the high road? These two haven’t taken the high road in one instance in regards to each other. But here’s the thing... certain situations, you gotta kinda look the other way.

“In all the times that I had my issues in the rivalry with Jones, we tried not to be personal. At times it got a bit personal and he said he’d go to my house and smack my wife on the ass, and I said nobody wants to smack his wife’s flat ass. We got a bit personal, right? But that’s as far as we went. But in terms of him and his troubles with the law and everything, I always tried to say, ‘Hey, man. Get better, do right.’ You don’t wish that type of bad on nobody.”

Cormier and Jones fought on two occasions with the first going in favor of Jones and the second ruled a no contest after Jones failed a drug test for performance-enhancing drugs. Their rematch was originally supposed to take place sooner than it eventually did but due to another P.E.D. related instance for Jones, as well as a Cormier injury, the two battled at UFC 214 in July 2017.

As for Sonnen, he made a career out of being a dominant wrestler with a superior wit and ability to trash talk better than anyone the MMA world had ever seen. Essentially, it’s what helped get him his shot against Jones when returning to light heavyweight after his run at middleweight.

“Chael, my boy, is going to say whatever he feels like saying, and in that, you open yourself up for that rebuttal if by chance you find yourself in a situation,” Cormier said. “Unfortunately, Chael finds himself in a situation that I have no knowledge of to speak on.

“Now, the man that sat up there for years, Chael, has allowed himself to be judged by a man that has truly been just the butt of everyone’s jokes for so long. So I asked myself, ‘Guys, are we adults?’ Yes, we are. But in this instance, do I think that Jones would act like one? Absolutely not. Is he wrong for not acting like one? Absolutely not.”

“I’m not surprised that Jones is taking shots at Chael right now because every time that Jones found himself in those issues, and that was a multitude of times, Chael was there to judge,” he added.

---

TOP STORIES

Payouts. Curtis Blaydes and Neil Magny lead all salaries at UFC Columbus.

Listen. Georges St-Pierre advises Francis Ngannou to ‘get paid what he’s worth.’

Out. Fabricio Werdum out of PFL 2022 regular season, considering retirement.

International. UFC 275 official for June in Singapore featuring two title fights.

Danger. Bas Rutten not amused by D.U.S.T. Commander Dale Brown.

---

VIDEO STEW

Cornering Jonas Bilharinho.

UFC 271 Déjà Vu.

Julianna Pena Relives Her Run on The Ultimate Fighter.

Cyborg in Zambia.

The Triple C & Schmo Show.

---

LISTEN UP

Fighter vs. Writer. MMA Fighting’s Damon Martin chats with Anthony Smith.

Heck of a Morning. MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck discusses Khamzat Chimaev’s future, booking the UFC heavyweight division, Strickland vs. Pereira, more.

---

SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE

Georges Smith-Pierre.

And then they face off.

The long-lost Diaz brother.

Destiny?

KKF is in.

That was a Shyamalan-level twist.

Shavkat vs. Magny?

Ouch.

Promise kept.

Now that’s some art.

Rate the scramble.

Intimidation.

Thank you, JWP.

---

FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Kelvin Gastelum (17-8) vs. Dricus Du Plessis (16-2); UFC 273, Apr. 9

Anthony Hernandez (8-2) vs. Josh Fremd (9-2); UFC 273, Apr. 9

Janay Harding (6-5) vs. Dayana Silva (9-7); Bellator 279, Apr. 23

Bruno Cappelozza (14-5) vs. Stuart Austin (15-7); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Brendan Loughnane (21-4) vs. Ryoji Kudo (10-2-1); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Ante Delija (19-5) vs. Matheus Scheffel (15-7); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Renan Ferreira (8-2) vs. Jamelle Jones (12-7); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Lance Palmer (22-5) vs. Chris Wade (20-7); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Bubba Jenkins (16-5) vs. Jo Sungbin (9-2); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Denis Goltsov (22-7) vs. Sam Kei (8-5); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Ali Isaev (9-0) vs. Klidson Abreu (15-5); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Sheymon Moraes (13-5) vs. Boston Salmon (8-3); PFL 2022 2, Apr. 28

Emily Ducote (10-6) vs. Alesha Zappitella (9-3); Invicta FC 47, May 11

Courtney King (4-2) vs. Chelsea Chandler (3-1); Invicta FC 47, May 11

Lindsey VanZandt (7-5) vs. Jillian DeCoursey (4-3); Invicta FC 47, May 11

Lisa Verzosa (6-2) vs. Serena DeJesus (4-2); Invicta FC 47, May 11

Janaisa Morandin (10-4) vs. Liana Pirosin (7-4); Invicta FC 47, May 11

Jake Hadley (8-0) vs. Allan Nascimento (18-6); UFC Fight Night, May 14

Kyung Ho Kang (17-9) vs. Saimon Oliveira (8-4); UFC 275, June 11

Robert Whittaker (23-6) vs. Marvin Vettori (18-4-1); UFC 275, June 11

Alejandra Lara (9-5) vs. Ilara Joanne (9-6); Belator 282. June 24

Gegard Mousasi (42-6-2) vs. Johnny Eblen (11-0); Bellator 282, June 24

---

FINAL THOUGHTS

No fights this weekend but plenty of announcements. Let the anticipation build. Thanks for reading!

---

EXIT POLL

---

If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @DrakeRiggs_ on Twitter and let him know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Instagram and like us on Facebook.