Daniel Cormier called out former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon "Bones" Jones immediately after getting Anthony "Rumble" Johnson to tap out in the main event of UFC 187 for the vacant belt. "Jon Jones, get your s**t together" was Cormier's message.
It appears Jones, who was suspended indefinitely and stripped of the title for his involvement in a hit-and-run in New Mexico that left a pregnant woman with a broken arm, is getting his life in order. His coach Mike Winkeljohn said that he's returned to the gym, but fighting in the UFC is not his focus.
"Jon is going to make the best of it," Winkeljohn said. "He's doing all the right things. He was in the gym helping Andrei Arlovski for his fight. He's in the gym helping others right now. He's gone back to help others, stopped doing those things that get you in trouble and go forward.
"I'm looking forward to Jon turning his life around and becoming a better person. Is he fighting again or not? I'm not sure. That's not important. What is important right now is that Jon takes care of himself and his family."
Cormier's first defense will be vs. Alexander Gustafsson, who lost a close decision to Jones at UFC 165 and then fell to Anthony Johnson before Johnson got his shot at the belt. Gustafsson was chosen over Ryan Bader, who has won four straight fights and was scheduled to fight Cormier before Cormier was plucked from that bout and placed in the UFC 187 main event.
Jones, had he been cleared to return, would get the nod over either challenger but Winkeljohn said it's possible Jones never returns to the UFC. Winkeljohn also said he recognizes Cormier as the legitimate champion, even though he didn't beat Jones to win it and lost to Jones in January.
"He's got the belt," Winkeljohn said of Cormier. "That's it. Jon was the champ, he's no longer the champ.
"Daniel Cormier's got the belt. I saw his fight with 'Rumble' and he deserves to be champion. He took a heck of a shot. They don't come any tougher than that. Coming back, staying composed enough to slip under that punch and take [Johnson] down to go into his world. He deserves to be champion."
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