Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones wasn't happy with the controversy surrounding his longtime rival Daniel Cormier and his UFC 210 weigh-in Friday.
Cormier, the current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion, initially missed weight Friday morning, only to re-emerge minutes later and make weight, while holding a towel. Cormier gained criticism -- and a bit of confusion -- for his ability to make weight so quickly after missing is.
“That was absolutely nuts,” Jones said. “I couldn’t believe what I was witnessing. I watched the guy -- If you focus on his hands, you can see him looking down and balancing out his weight just right to make 205. It's a -- what a clever trick. Very dishonest of him. "The crazy thing is that it was allowed to happen. I'd imagine there has to be some type of commission or something to go back and see this blatant foul play and address it -- nobody addressed it. They just got away with one of the dirtiest things I’ve seen in sports,"
As we reported earlier on Fightful.com, NYSAC executive director Tony Giardina cleared the air on Cormier's second weigh-in, at least, saying that Championship fighters have that ability. He said that he didn't happen to see Cormier holding the towel, however.
Many are surprised that Jones is even participating in UFC 210, as he's still serving a year-long suspension after testing positive for Letrozol and clomiphene in July 2016 ahead of UFC 200. The United States Anti-Doping Agency would suspend Jones, but clear him of wrongdoing. Jones has only fought once in the last two years because of trouble outside the cage. Cormier has warned Jones against getting in the cage following the fight.
Elsewhere in the scrum, Jones said that Cormier and fellow 205-pounder Jimi Manuwa know he's not a cheater, despite accusing him of such
"I have never cheated in this sports. My success has been hard work and dedication. I'm not worried about it following me forever. I believe the fans are aware of how the situation happened. And those who aren't aware of how the situation happened, it's well documented. We're dealing with smart people with USADA. If I had cheated, there would have been a much more strict punishment," said Jones.
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