Cormier claims Jones rejected seven-figure wrestling offer: 'He will not do it'

Daniel Cormier has revealed that Jon Jones turned down a seven-figure offer for a six-minute wrestling match between the two former UFC champions, insisting his long-time rival is unwilling to compete in any format where he risks losing.

Speaking in a Q&A session on his YouTube channel, Cormier said an unnamed organisation — separate from wrestling promotion Real American Freestyle — approached both men with the offer, but Jones declined. “There’s an organization that offered us both seven figures for a six-minute match,” Cormier said. “He will not do it. I’m telling you, he will not do it. I’m not lying. I went through the negotiations, and I said, ‘If he wrestles me, I’ll do it. But it’s going to be 10-0. I’m going to tech him.’ But unfortunately, he knows it’s going to be 10-0, so he won’t do it.”

Cormier and Jones share one of the most storied rivalries in UFC history. Jones won both of their bouts during the 2010s, though the second was later overturned to a no-contest after Jones tested positive for a banned substance. The pair reignited their feud earlier this year when they coached opposite each other on the Russian MMA reality TV show ALF, which prompted fresh talk of a post-fighting showdown.

After the wrestling match fell through, Cormier said he attempted to negotiate a grappling contest instead, only to be rebuffed again. “So then I said, ‘How about we do a grappling match?’” Cormier recalled. “He said no, only submissions. I said, ‘Why don’t we do points, right, where we win? I don’t want to be tied at the end.’ ‘No points, only submissions.’ So he won’t do it. He won’t compete with me in anything he thinks there’s a chance that he’d lose in. So, give up on the Jon Jones thing. He’s not going to do it.”

The revelation adds another layer of uncertainty around Jones, whose future in combat sports has been unclear for some time. After defeating Stipe Miocic for the heavyweight title at UFC 309, Jones was expected to unify his belt against interim champion Tom Aspinall but instead announced his retirement. He subsequently reversed that decision with the aim of fighting Alex Pereira at UFC White House, though he has since disclosed that severe arthritis in his hips is hampering any comeback, while continuing to send mixed signals about whether he will compete again.