Daniel Cormier has shared his instant reaction to Jon Jones retiring from MMA.
Talks for a heavyweight unification bout between ‘Bones’ and Tom Aspinall have been ongoing all year.
On Saturday, Dana White claimed Jones has retired, making Aspinall the new undisputed heavyweight champion.
Jon Jones subsequently confirmed the news in a statement before his biggest UFC rival posted a video on YouTube reacting to the revelation.
- READ MORE: Daniel Cormier reveals the ‘real reason’ why Jon Jones doesn’t want to fight Tom Aspinall
Daniel Cormier accuses Jon Jones of quitting
Daniel Cormier lost twice in fights against Jones, with whom he has shared a bitter feud for years.
A failed drug test means one of those defeats has been expunged from his record, but the footage of him being brutally knocked out by the greatest fighter of all time is still there for the world to see.
‘DC’ has been honest with his thoughts throughout the lengthy Jones vs Aspinall saga.
The former dual-weight UFC champion kept it real as he reacted to the news of his nemesis retiring.
“Unbelievable. I didn’t think it was gonna happen this fast,” Cormier said.
“I said, ‘If Jon Jones doesn’t fight this guy, Jon Jones quit.’ Because he will walk away from something that has defined his entire adult life.
“Honestly, I’m not mad that this young man has a life with his family, and they’ve got all this money, and they’ve got all these great things.
“It does not change the fact, by not stepping in that Octagon, he quit. He didn’t want to fight Tom Aspinall, it’s so surprising.
“Is he scared? No, but by not fighting Aspinall, he opened that conversation. He lets every one of you question why he doesn’t fight him.”
Check out a list of Jones’ accomplishments in the graphic below provided by Sofascore.
Daniel Cormier expects Jon Jones comeback
The UFC Hall of Famer believes that Jones’ retirement has been triggered by a desire to avoid Aspinall.
If the new heavyweight king loses, Cormier expects that we’ll see Jones return from retirement.
“I honestly feel like if Tom loses, he’ll come back,” he added.
“It is crazy to me, because that’s only going to make it worse.
“I don’t know if this is tactics by the UFC. I don’t know if this is frustrations with Jon Jones. I don’t know what this is. Does it feel like the end completely? I hope it does, because if he cares about his legacy, he doesn’t want to be sitting there beating up on guys that may get past Tom Aspinall.
“They gave him the money, they gave him everything, and he still wouldn’t do it.”