UFC 285 is one of the most-anticipated fight cards of 2023. UFC women’s flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko will defend her title against Alexa Grasso. Former bantamweight champ Cody Garbrandt will take on Julio Arce in the prelims. Other than that, Derek Brunson, Bo Nickal, and Shavkhat Rakhmonov will also feature on the card. But the selling point of the event is the return of Jon Jones.
The news of Jon’s return got leaked quite early. An advertisement outside the T-Mobile arena gave away the fact that Jones was going to take on Ciryl Gane for the heavyweight title. But UFC President Dana White soon cleared all the confusion and confirmed the news. Jon was in contention for a heavyweight title shot for a long time and Francis Ngannou’s exit brought Gane to the table.
It doesn't get bigger than this – UFC President @DanaWhite confirms that @JonnyBones will take on @Ciryl_Gane for the 𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐏𝐔𝐓𝐄𝐃 heavyweight championship at #UFC285 🏆
— UFC (@ufc) January 15, 2023
[ March 4 | @TMobileArena | Tix On Sale Jan 20 at https://t.co/LJfHcNZo6J ] pic.twitter.com/oUpfPUMYXp
The event takes place on March 4 inside the aforementioned T-Mobile Arena. Jonny Bones is making his return after 3 years since fighting Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 for the last time. It certainly has a big event feel and the fans can expect to see Joe Rogan’s return to the commentary booth. Rogan missed both UFC 283 and UFC 284.
The commentary trio of Jon Anik, Rogan, and Daniel Cormier is legendary. While some fans feel they are too friendly to give comprehensive narration, others love the energy the trio brings to the booth. While Anik and Rogan may return for the PPV, there is no official confirmation on the news. However, Jon Jones wants Daniel Cormier to commentate on his return fight as well!
Are Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier friends now?
UFC is famous for its intense rivalry between its fighters. From Conor McGregor vs Khabib Nurmagomedov to Colby Covington vs Jorge Masvidal, fans have been treated to some great feuds. However, perhaps the most heated rivalry in the modern UFC era is between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier. The pair fought each other twice and both fights exceeded expectations.
Jon beat DC at UFC 182 via unanimous decision and via TKO at UFC 214. But the UFC 214 result was overturned into a no-contest after a USADA violation from Jon. However, that is not the end of the controversies between the two. They had a huge brawl during one of the press conferences to promote their first fight. Not to mention the many verbal shots they have taken toward each other.
In all seriousness DC, I’m cool with you bro. I recognize the man you are, I wasn’t lying when I said those things in my post fight interview. Outside of us being fierce competitors I dig the way you represent yourself, the wrestling community, our community, and our sport
— BONY (@JonnyBones) February 17, 2023
Sit down interview, post fight interview, coaches meeting. We’re cool man for real. I appreciate your competitive nature, you drove me to be a better competitor. Forever grateful.
— BONY (@JonnyBones) February 17, 2023
Hence, fans were caught off-guard when Jon Jones announced on his Twitter account that he wants Daniel Cormier at UFC 285. Jon stated that he is willing to forget about the past and extended an olive branch. So how did Daniel react to it? Some felt that the two bring out the worst in each other. However, DC seems more than willing to make amends with Jon as well.
Addressing the issue on his YouTube channel, Cormier said, “I’ll be honest with you, it’s kind of nice hearing a fighter acknowledge, that even with our history, he believes that I can do him justice and do the job fairly – because I’ve done it before.”
“It seems now that Jones is maturing. He seems to be taking a much different approach to the build to the fight and how he’s approaching everything. But it feels nice for him to acknowledge, ‘I think this guy could do me justice.’” (h/t MMA News)
Although it does not mean that DC and Jon will become the best of friends now, the bad blood seems to have evaporated. Hence it will be interesting to see if the UFC appoints Daniel to work the UFC 285 event or not. What are your thoughts on the matter? Let us know in the comments down below.