Daniel Cormier gushes over Jon Jones’ UFC championship longevity: ‘How’s that doable?’

As soon as upon a time, getting Daniel Cormier to say constructive issues about Jon Jones would have been a protracted shot. Now that their heated rivalry has lengthy been put to mattress, Cormier can’t assist however admit he’s impressed with Jones’ longevity as a UFC champion.

Cormier and Jones’ previous has been well-documented. They had been at every others throats once they had been championship rivals at UFC 182 and UFC 214. Cormier has since hung up the gloves and entered the UFC Corridor of Fame, however Jones remains to be going at it, as a champion in a second division.

Talking together with his former “DC & RC” co-host Ryan Clark, Cormier gushed over Jones’ longevity on the high of the mountain.

“For me, DC, being a UFC fan who began with Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, then moved into the period with you and Jon, we had these champions that you can rely on,” Clark stated on a reunion episode of “DC & RC.” “It was the Kamaru Usman, it was the Alexander Volkanovski, it was the Israel Adesanya and we’ve transitioned from these guys. Now we’re with Ilia Topuria and Alex Pereira is among the best fighters that’s ever lived. It’s actually cool although that by means of all that, Jon Jones remains to be round and we’re nonetheless ready for the subsequent large Jon.”

“How? How? How’s that doable?!” Cormier interjected.

“This dude actually – like, hey man, I don’t care how you’re feeling about him. I won’t have messed with the dude on that degree, however how?! It’s been – I feel he was a champion in 2011 for the primary time. That’s a loopy thought! That by means of all that, all these dudes, I imply three generations of gamers.

“… It’ll be like Tom Brady enjoying by means of 30 years of soccer. Three completely different generations of gamers at quarterback, as a result of it’s not like being a lineman. It’s not being an undercard man. It’s a foremost occasion man that has been foremost eventing for 13 years? That basically is an insane thought.”

Jones first claimed UFC gold by defeating Mauricio “Shogun” Rua for the sunshine heavyweight title at UFC 128 on March 19, 2011. As we enter 2025, Jones is still a UFC champion, however within the heavyweight division.

Clark requested Cormier to elucidate how onerous it’s to perform a championship longevity in MMA.

“It’s virtually unattainable, particularly to do it for a very long time,” Cormier stated. “That’s why while you watch a man like Usman or Volkanovski, the place they only form of go, they usually’re rolling, proper? It looks like they’re unbeatable.

“… The entire time that you simply’re up and also you’re the person, and also you’re laying in that large, stunning home, there’s a younger man that doesn’t have what you might have. As you’re doing lots, as you’re nonetheless making an attempt to be one of the best, he’s doing like somewhat bit extra as a result of he desires for what you might have. It’s like having a man simply strolling you down continually. So, it’s very tough. You need to proceed to get higher.”