Getty Jon Jones takes questions during a news conference at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino to address being pulled from his light heavyweight title fight at UFC 200 against Daniel Cormier due to a potential violation of the UFC's anti-doping policy on July 7, 2016, in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier never misses an opportunity to slam his arch-nemesis, former light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones. “DC” and Jones have fought twice, with Jones winning via unanimous decision at UFC 182 and originally knocking out Comirier at UFC 214 before having the result overturned to a no contest after failing a drug test.
DC’s most recent dig come during Monday’s episode of DC & Helwani, featuring ESPN’s Ariel Helwani and Cormier. The former two-division champion revealed that he is still a part of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) testing pool. All fighters under contract with the UFC who wish to compete are subjected to random drug testing by the organization.
Cormier is retired, however he has elected to continue being tested “for fun.”
“At this point, I took myself off the rankings — I’m in USADA right now taking tests,” Cormier said. “I got tested yesterday!”
And when asked why he’s still being drug tested, Cormier slammed Jones. Bones has a history of failed drug tests, including testing positive for a steroid metabolite after finishing DC at UFC 214 in 2017. It was deemed by an arbitrator that Jones did not knowingly take a banned substance and he served a 15-month suspension.
“Because even in retirement, I’m still cleaner than Jon Jones,” Cormier laughed. “I’m just going to take tests for the rest of my life! Look at my arm. [USADA] came into my house, and I go, ‘You want urine? You want blood?’ Because I’ve always been clean.”
“I’ve never had a bad test,” Cormier continued. “So at this point, I’m just taking tests for fun. I mean, why not? Why not, Ariel? Showing these young people just to keep life right. Because most times, guys like me, they retire, they get a little bit of other stuff to help them feel good, rejuvenated and everything. I’m just high on life.”
DC is still “proving the point” that he doesn’t use drugs, even though he’s no longer competing as a mixed martial artist.
“My wife’s like, ‘USADA’s here — Why?'” DC continued. “I was like, ‘Baby, I’m still proving the point.’ Clean, clean, even though I’m not an athlete anymore.”
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Cormier’s Comment About Jones Stemmed From a Discussion About the Recent Suspension of Yair Rodriguez
Cormier brought up Jones while discussing No. 4 ranked Yair Rodriguez’s six-month suspension. It was revealed last week that “El Pantera” was suspended by USADA for failing to notify the organization of his whereabouts three times in the past 12 months.
“Like all UFC athletes, Rodriguez, 28, is a member of the UFC Registered Testing Pool and is therefore subject to certain Whereabouts responsibilities, which allow him to be located for testing,” USADA said in a statement via MMA Fighting. “Accurate Whereabouts information is a crucial component of an effective out-of-competition testing program because it enables anti-doping organizations to conduct no-notice sample collections, which helps maintain effective doping deterrence and detection.
“Rodriguez failed to update his Whereabouts information and was unavailable for testing at locations provided in his Whereabouts Filings on three occasions. He accrued a Whereabouts Failure in each of the first three quarters of 2020. The accumulation of three Whereabouts Failures within a 12-month period constitutes a policy violation under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy.”
USADA confirmed that Rodriguez’s “conduct did not raise suspicion that he was trying to avoid being available for testing.” The suspension is retroactive to September 8, meaning the top featherweight will be eligible to return to the Octagon after March 8, 2021.
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Cormier Said It ‘Sucks for Yair’ But DC Believes That If He Can Update His Whereabouts, ‘Anybody Can Do It’
DC gave his thoughts on Rodriguez’s situation. Cormier is no longer an active fighter and maintains a busy schedule, filling positions such as UFC color commentating and podcasting. DC said that if he can update USADA on his whereabouts via the organization’s application, Rodriguez can as well.
“I’m retired, I work, I have this show, I’ve got a lot of irons in the fire and I can still update my USADA [app],’ Cormier said during Monday’s DC & Helwani. “Nobody helps me, I do it myself. I go on there [and] put my whereabouts [in]. If I can do it, anybody can do it. Sucks for Yair that he’s gone, but also, hey USADA, show up anytime. I’ll never be pulsing when you show up. I’ll never pulse.”
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