White: If Jones is ready by UFC 214, he fights Cormier

Former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones will be eligible to return from suspension to the Octagon in early July. UFC president Dana White says he will get an immediate title, but there is an “if.”

“Cormier is available to fight on July 8, but that time frame doesn’t work for Jon Jones,” said White to Brett Okamoto for ESPN. “Cormier already told me he’s willing to fight either Jones or Manuwa.

“If Jon Jones is ready to fight on July 29, we’ll see the Jones versus Cormier rematch, finally.”

So if Jones is not ready or wants a tune up, then light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier will fight Jimi Manuwa at UFC 213 on July 8 in Las Vegas. If Jones is ready to fight Cormier, in July, then the pair will fight at UFC 214 on July 29 in Anaheim, California.

In an added wrinkle, White has said he doesn’t trust Jones to headline a card, so his world title fight return may not even be the main event. White also remarked on the heat – whether it is manufactured or real has little relevance – between Manuwa and Cormier

“Jimi wants Cormier,” said White. “They got into it at UFC 210 [earlier this month] and Jimi told me he’s never been talked to like that before. We’ll see how this plays out.”

And to pass the time, Cormier and Manuwa are getting bitter on Twitter.

https://twitter.com/dc_mma/status/854022283307868161https://twitter.com/POSTERBOYJM/status/854023519654617090https://twitter.com/dc_mma/status/854023713624162304https://twitter.com/POSTERBOYJM/status/853990726241316864https://twitter.com/dc_mma/status/854020187443519488https://twitter.com/dc_mma/status/854023157237243905https://twitter.com/POSTERBOYJM/status/854024032013910017https://twitter.com/POSTERBOYJM/status/854025290489749505