MMA fans looking forward to UFC light heavyweight champion Jon "Bones" Jones defending his belt against Daniel Cormier at UFC 182 may not get the chance to see Jones's title on display in his corner.
The champion explained last week at the media event "The Time is Now" explained the reasoning for not bringing his belt out to the ring, saying it started when he beat former champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 128 in 2011, according to MMA Fighting. Mauricio's brother, Murilo "Ninja" Rua, was showing off the belt in his brother's corner before the bout.
"When I fought Shogun, his brother Ninja Rua brought the belt out to the cage," said Jones. "And when I was in the cage and I saw Ninja was holding the belt over Shogun, I remember feeling this feeling in my heart that there was nothing in the Octagon that could happen where I wouldn't leave without that belt. It reminded me why I was there, what I was there for."
Bones added that all his nervousness disappeared once he saw the championship.
"Everything went away," he said. "I was like, 'whoa, the belt is right there. I can view this. It's so close. I'm probably going home with the belt.' I just became superhuman after that and that's probably why Shogun lost so much. That belt, I got to see it right there before the fight. You dangled it over me."
UFC 182, which will take place on Jan. 3, will see Jones (20-1) and Cormier (15-0) settle their intense rivalry, which has involved several verbal spats and a brawl at a press conference in August in Las Vegas, Bleacher Report said.
Jones intends to avoid showing off his belt so that Cormier doesn't have any more incentive to win the fight.
"For the contender, just to see that right before the match?" Jones asked. "It's like drinking a gallon of water right before walking into the desert, you know what I mean?"
