Jon “Bones” Jones won’t be throwing punches at Daniel Cormier as originally planned this Saturday at UFC 197, but he took verbal shots at him on Monday.
Cormier backed out of UFC 197 after suffering a lower leg injury earlier this month, but while doing an ESPN media car wash, Jones expressed doubt regarding Cormier’s injury.
“There’s been lots of rumors that he was hurt, not injured,” Jones said on SportsCenter. “And to drop the fight being ‘hurt,’ it just makes no sense. My body, I have aches and little nooks and crannies all over my body, but it’s the cost of being an elite level athlete. You fight through that stuff.”
The former light heavyweight champion defeated Cormier at UFC 182 before being stripped of the title because of a hit-and-run incident.
Jones, who is returning to the octagon after a 15-month hiatus marred with legal troubles, will fight Ovince Saint Preux for the interim light heavyweight title belt after Cormier’s withdrawal from UFC 197.
If Jones is able to win Saturday, it’ll set up an interesting rematch with Cormier down the road.
Thumbnail photo via Jayne Kamin-Oncea/USA TODAY Sports Images
