Jon "Bones" Jones and Daniel Cormier surely ramped up excitement for their September 27 battle for Jones' UFC light heavyweight title when they got into a heated brawl during a promotional stare down, but now they are apologizing for their actions.
The contempt was clear between the two elite fighters and even after they were separated the battle continued online via Twitter. After settling down though, it appears the two regret letting their anger get out of hand.
"I realize our sport is going against the wave, that some people consider our sport taboo and barbaric," Jones said. "I realize my actions didn't help, and that's why I was the first one to come out and apologize to D.C., the public and the organization.
I realize my actions could've almost set us back. But I think it's temporary. The exposure that's come from it is something that shouldn't be ignored. We were on 'Good Morning America' this morning, and literally people are talking about it everywhere -- it was the sports story of the day. So it's something I'm not proud of, but it definitely had its advantages."
Cormier has also commented on the fight, explaining that bullying he suffered as a young man created a quick reaction trigger to someone behaving aggressively toward him.
"For a really long time, I struggled to defend myself," Cormier said. "These kids would pick on me. One year, it was Easter. There were eggs. And this kid just popped me in the eye with the egg and punched me. I got up and left -- and struggled with that for a long time.
"Whenever someone aggressively confronts me, I'm going to stand up for myself. That thinking shaped me to go to college [Oklahoma State], the Olympics, to do all the things I've done in my life."
In the immediate Twitter aftermath of the fiasco, one of Cormier's tweets embodied his train of thought.
I won't let another man get in my face and put his forehead against mine. I will react every time. @JonnyBones next time I will slap you.
With this behind them, the remainder of their promos shouldn't be so packed with fireworks. However, their match in the ring could be plenty explosive. Jones will be defending his title for the eighth consecutive bout against the undefeated Cormier, who has not lost a round of UFC action in his career at either heavyweight or light heavyweight.
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