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Daniel Cormier has weighed in with his thoughts on Jon Jones’ upcoming Heavyweight debut and asserted that he won’t KO any fighters in the 265 lbs division.
Current UFC Heavyweight Champion, Stipe Miocic, will be defending his title against Francis Ngannou at UFC 260 on March 27th, 2021. Jon Jones, a former UFC Light Heavyweight titleholder, will be moving up to the 265 lbs division and fight the winner of the Miocic-Ngannou matchup for the Heavyweight Championship later this year.
On an edition of ESPN MMA’s DC & Helwani, Jon Jones’ archrival and MMA legend, Daniel Cormier spoke with co-host Ariel Helwani about Bones' highly anticipated debut in the UFC Heavyweight division.
“Jon Jones will not knock out anybody. (Jones) doesn’t hit hard. If he couldn’t knock these dudes out at 205, he’s not knocking these heavyweights out,” Daniel Cormier said. Ariel Helwani then cited a recent video that features Jon Jones who’s gained a considerable amount of weight ahead of his heavyweight debut.
Cormier responded by stating, “It doesn’t matter if he put on weight. It still takes punching power. Why do you think Derrick Lewis can lose 30 pounds – see how much leaner he is – and still knock people out? It takes power. It’s not just weight. You see guys at heavyweight that can’t knock people out. There was once an idea that Cain (Velasquez) didn’t punch hard. But Cain had more knockouts than anybody until Derrick passed him just recently. It’s crazy how the perception…But I’m telling you from experience, Jones doesn’t punch very hard. (Jones) kicks hard, knees hard, but his punches; that’s gonna be an issue once he fights heavyweight. Because they know, right? They know that he wasn’t producing knockouts down at 205, so they’ll be a little more willing to kind of just walk him down to get to him.” (*H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)
Daniel Cormier suggested that Jon Jones’ lack of punching power could adversely affect his run in the Heavyweight division. Cormier insinuated that the vast majority of Heavyweights possess incredible punching power and this could hurt Jon Jones when he goes up against them.
Daniel Cormier is no stranger to Jon Jones and the latter’s power
The first fight between Daniel Cormier and Jon Jones transpired at UFC 182 in January 2015, which the latter won via unanimous decision. Their rematch took place at UFC 214 in July 2017. Bones won the rematch via a third-round KO, finishing off Cormier with a head kick and follow-up ground strikes.
However, the result of this rematch was subsequently overturned as Jon Jones had failed PED tests in relation to the UFC 214 fight. Jones tested positive for turinabol, and the UFC 214 result was overturned into an NC (No Contest).
