Daniel Cormier might not like what he’s seeing between Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen, but he’s not necessarily in disagreement.
Cormier, a former two-division UFC champion, is not surprised to see Jones taking shots at Sonnen for his recent legal troubles, adding to a storied social media feud between the two MMA stars and former foes.
Cormier, who’s friends with Sonnen and had a heated rivalry with Jones when he was an active fighter, actually sided with “Bones,” and thinks it’s fair game for Jones to come after Sonnen.
“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 on his YouTube channel. “Unfortunately, Chael finds himself in a situation, which I have no knowledge to speak on. …
“Now, the man that sat up there for years, Chael, has allowed himself to be judged by a man that’s truly been the butt of everyone’s jokes for so long. So I asked myself, Are we adults? Yes, we are. But in this instance, do I think 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 that position, and that was a multitude of times, Chael was there to judge.”
Sonnen, who retired from MMA competition in 2019, currently faces 11 battery charges for alleged Las Vegas hotel altercation. He’s also being accused in lawsuit of attacking couple in Las Vegas “without provocation.”
Jones, who beat Sonnen by first-round TKO at UFC 159 in April 2013 after a coaching stint on “The Ultimate Fighter” reality series, also has a long history with the law that dates from his early days as UFC champion.
Most recently, Jones was arrested in Las Vegas in September on charges of misdemeanor battery domestic violence and felony injuring and tampering with a vehicle. In December, Jones reached a plea deal with prosecutors, resulting in a dismissal of the domestic violence charge. He also pled no contest to a misdemeanor charge of destruction of property.
Cormier said he doesn’t really enjoy watching feuds get this personal. He’s not afraid to get in heated confrontations when the situation calls for it, but thinks there should be limits to rivalries.
“Fellas, are we adults or are we children?” Cormier said. “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: In certain situations, you kind of have to look the other way.
“In all the times that I had my issues in the build up to 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 in the ass, and I said nobody wants to smack his wife’s flat ass. We got a bit personal, but that’s as far as we went. But in terms of his troubles with the law and everything, I always tried to say, ‘Hey, man. Do better. Get right.’ You don’t wish that type of bad on nobody.”
