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LOS ANGELES -- One of the biggest grudge rematches in UFC history will go down Saturday night in the main event of UFC 214 ... knock on wood. UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier of San Jose, Calif., is scheduled to meet former longtime champion Jon Jones of Albuquerque, N.M., at Anaheim's Honda Center.
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The blood rivals have traded insults in person and over social media going back years. But although this marks the fifth time the duo have been scheduled to fight, if nothing gets in the way the next few days, it will mark just the second time the two actually clash in the cage.
Then-champion Jones (22-1) handed Cormier (18-1) his only professional defeat at UFC 182 in January 2015 via unanimous decision.
Other attempts at putting together the bout dating to 2014 were scuttled because of injuries by both fighters and, more recently, Jones' propensity to get in trouble. A series of run-ins with the law in New Mexico led to the UFC suspending Jones and stripping him of the title in April 2015. Cormier won the vacant belt a month later and has defended it since.
They were scheduled to headline UFC 200 last July in Jones' return, but Jones tested positive for a banned substance in the runup to the fight and was pulled in the days leading up to the matchup.
This bout marks the 30-year-old Jones' last, best chance to get back on track and try to live up to the greatness long expected of him. Jones defeated five former world champions in a row during his four-year run as titleholder, and a vigorous debate had started as to whether he was already the greatest mixed martial arts fighter in history when he got sidetracked.
Cormier, meanwhile, has staked his own place among the greats. The former Olympic wrestler from Oklahoma State was unbeaten as a heavyweight before going down to light heavyweight as a nod to his gym teammate, Cain Velasquez, who was heavyweight champ, and then Cormier cleaned up at 205 pounds, as well.
The loss to Jones was his only blemish. And while Jones was the clear-cut winner the first time, it was a competitive fight. And with him only fighting once in the 30 months since UFC 182, whether he's the Jon Jones of old remains an open question.
Both fighters have continued to go low with their insults in the days leading into the event. At a Wednesday press conference in downtown Los Angeles, Jones said Cormier looked "like a crackhead in a suit," and Cormier told Jones he believed that all but three of his 19 UFC fights were done under the influence of performance-enhancing drugs.
The UFC loaded UFC 214 with three title fights, in part to make sure the fans still have value for their purchase in case Cormier-Jones fell apart once again.
In the co-feature bout, champion Tyron Woodley (17-3-1) defends his welterweight championship against Demian Maia. Woodley, of Ferguson, Mo., makes this third defense of the title and is 4-0-1 in his past five fights. Maia (25-6), meanwhile, had to win seven straight fights before the UFC finally granted a title shot to the highly skilled but uncharismatic grappler from Sao Paulo, Brazil.
The bout also features a matchup for the vacant women's featherweight title. Controversial Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino (17-1, 1 no-contest) of San Diego, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest women's MMA fighters in history but has also been twice caught for banned substances, meets tough veteran Tonya Evinger of (19-5, 1 NC) of Houston.
The title is vacant because Holland's Germaine de Randamie, who won the inaugural title in January by defeating Holly Holm, refused to defend the belt against former Strikeforce and Invicta champion Justino, citing her PED history. The UFC stripped her of the title for refusing to face the top challenger.
