Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier Title Fight: Jones Pulls Out of UFC 178 After Leg Injury
Jon Jones pulled out of his upcoming title defense against Daniel Cormier at UFC 178 that was scheduled on Sept. 27 in Las Vegas after sustaining an injury in training camp.
MMA Fighting reported that Jones, the reigning light heavyweight champion, suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee along with a sprained ankle in practice on Monday.
Sources said that Jones, who holds a 20-1 record, will not need to undergo surgery, but would to stay out of mixed martial arts-related activities for the next several months.
Following the announcement of Jones' injury, UFC said in a statement that the reigning pound-for-pound king will still defend his title against Cormier in his next fight, which will now be at UFC 182 on Jan. 23.
Cormier, who engaged in an ugly brawl with Jones during a press conference earlier this month, expressed disappointment, saying that he has been training very hard for the fight even if he has yet to recover from a knee injury.
"It's very disappointing," Cormier said. "I started to train very hard. It's a little discouraging, but now I have time to get completely healthy. I don't know how hurt Jon is but we have to remember that I took this fight with a pre-existing injury."
Cormier admitted that he is unsure about the extent of Jones' injury, but he pointed out that the reigning champion should have considered fighting through the injury.
"I said from the beginning that Jon Jones isn't afraid of anyone, but if I can go in there with a partially torn ACL, I think he should have fought; tough it up and fight," Cormier told MMA Junkie. "I don't know the extent of his injuries, and if it's really bad, I'll take it back. But on the surface, I heard he hurt himself."
The 35-year-old Cormier was set to undergo surgery to repair a partial ACL tear, but postponed the plan after he was chosen to replace Alexander Gustafsson in Jones' next title defense.
Cormier will still need to put off his plan to go under the knife despite the postponement because undergoing surgery at this point will keep him out for at least six months.
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