Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier Confirmed For April 23’s UFC 197
During the first part of 2016, the speculation about the main event of UFC’s April 23 pay-per-view event, which will now be labeled UFC 197 after tonight’s UFC 196 became UFC Fight Night 82 following the cancellation of its originally scheduled heavyweight title bout, was centered on the long awaited rematch between current light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier and former champion Jon Jones.
Tonight (Saturday, February 6, 2016) on the UFC Fight Night 82 main card, the UFC confirmed that speculation by finally revealing the fight will take place in the main event of UFC 197 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
But that’s far from all that the event will feature, as flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson will take on rising Olympic gold medalist wrestler Henry Cejudo in the co-main event.
Jones and Cormier had an infamous rivalry throughout 2014 and into early 2015 that may already rank as one of the most heated and hyped in UFC history. Shot into the media stratosphere by their outrageous UFC 178 Media Day brawl, ‘Bones’ would go on to outlast Cormier by unanimous decision in the main event of January 2015’s UFC 182.
All-time great Jones moved on to a rivalry with fearsome knockout slugger Anthony “Rumble” Johnson at UFC 187, but his highly publicized Albuquerque hit-and-run saw him out of the fight, stripped of his title, and suspended indefinitely by the UFC. It also opened the door for Cormier to step in and defeat ‘Rumble’ with an impression display of wrestling finished with a fight-ending submission.
Cormier also went on to defeat Alexander Gustafsson in a classic five-round war at last October’s UFC 192, and Jones was since reinstated, re-taking his No. 1 pound-for-pound spot in the official rankings in the process. But while Cormier has no doubt been an effective and deserving champion, many still feel that the official title rests with ‘Bones,’ the man who set the record for most consecutive light heavyweight title defenses and beat Cormier just a little over a year ago.
So one of the year’s most anticipated grudge matches is official. Who is your pick to emerge from Vegas with the 205-pound belt?
