Jon Jones made waves in the MMA world with his recent delays in signing the bout agreement for a rematch with Alexander Gustafsson. After the delays made news, it came out (via Dana White) that Jones was requesting a fight with Daniel Cormier, who is supposed to get the winner of Jones/Gustafsson 2 in a title fight.
The move has been criticized by some fans and media who feel that champions should fight who they’re told, while others have focused on the fact that it’s not as though Jones is asking for a weak fight, he’s asking for a man many were viewing as one of the only potential challengers to his throne prior to the first Gustafsson meeting in Cormier.
Jones’ trainer, Greg Jackson, attempted to explain his view of the situation when speaking with ESPN.com.
Jackson had the following to say about Jones’ courage and the fact that he may simply be looking for new mountains to climb:
“Everybody is looking for a chink in his armor and they are desperate for it,” Jackson told ESPN.com. “They are desperate, like, ‘Please let us find something wrong with the guy.’
“I’ve never heard him say, ‘I’ll never fight Gustafsson again. I’m scared.’ I’ve never seen that from him at all. I don’t really think courage is a problem for Jon Jones. He goes up against the best guys in the division.”
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“It might be a career move,” Jackson said. “He already beat Gustafsson. Maybe he’s looking for a challenge and doesn’t feel that Gustafsson is the challenge everybody else thinks he is. I honestly don’t know, but it could be that Cormier would escalate his greatness more than someone he has already beaten.”