Why Jon Jones won’t take his belt to the Octagon
UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones explains why Daniel Cormier is not going to see the championship belt until after the fight is over.
At last week’s “The Time is Now” media event, UFC light heavyweight Jon Jones explained why he won’t bring the belt out as he walks to the Octagon.
“I would never bring my belt out to the cage,” said Jones as transcribed by Dave Doyle for MMAFighting.
“When I fought Shogun, his brother Ninja Rua brought the belt out to the cage. And when I was in the cage and I saw Ninja was holding the belt over Shogun, I remember feeling this feeling in my heart that there was nothing in the Octagon that could happen where I wouldn’t leave without that belt. It reminded me why I was there, what I was there for.”
“I’m watching Shogun, and then I just see that belt and all my nervousness went away. Everything went away. I was like, ‘whoa, the belt is right there. I can view this. It’s so close. I’m probably going home with the belt.’ I just became superhuman after that and that’s probably why Shogun lost so much. That belt, I got to see it right before the fight. You dangled it over me.”
“For the contender, just to see that right before the match?. t’s like drinking a gallon of water right before walking into the desert, you know what I mean?”
So don’t expect Daniel Cormier to catch a glimpse of the belt before the pair fight at UFC 182, on January 3, 2015, in Las Vegas, Nevada, live on PPV. The real question is, who wears it afterwards?