Cormier on Jones' new physique: 'Maybe this guy is messing with what was given to him'
Jon Jones' new, jacked-up physique doesn't have Daniel Cormier quaking in his boots.
When the former UFC light heavyweight champion resurfaced on Instagram with a bulked-up body forged in the fires of power lifting, there were fans, fighters, and media members alike writing 140-character eulogies for Cormier's current (and, in their minds, doomed) title run.
Cormier, however, isn't worried, and believes Jones' newfound bulk could be a hindrance rather than an advantage.
"Maybe he feels that by getting stronger, it's going to make him a better fighter," Cormier told Ariel Helwani on "The MMA Hour," according to MMAFighting.com's Marc Raimondi. "The reality is, when I saw him getting so bulky, as a competitor, I thought, 'Wow, this isn't bad for me.' This isn't bad for me as a competitor, because the Jon Jones that was kind of skinny and maybe wasn't the bulkiest guy, it all worked, Helwani. ... It allowed him for range; it allowed him for optimal speed. It allowed him for quickness and agility.
"Looking at all the extra bulk, to me I was like, 'Well, maybe this will slow him down. Maybe he won't be the fastest guy. Maybe this guy is messing with what was given to him.' In reality, what has been given to him is perfect."
After losing a bout to Jones at UFC 182 in January, Cormier captured the vacant 205-pound title a few months later when "Bones" was stripped of the title and suspended indefinitely following a hit-and-run arrest. Jones has since been reinstated to the UFC's active roster, and could embark on his quest to regain the title at some point in early 2016.
Although Cormier is happy Jones has refocused his life in a positive way, he still cautions his nemesis to not mess with the "recipe."
"Now he's gotten bigger," Cormier said. "For me as a competitor, I thought, 'Wow. You start messing with the recipe - the recipe that's actually really, really good - maybe this opens up the door for some of his competitors.'"