Jon Jones says Daniel Cormier could have been the greatest ever in a different era

Jon Jones has also offered to fly his old rival Daniel Cormier to Baton Rouge for pizza and a meet-and-greet with fans, in an attempt to end one of MMA's most bitter feuds.

Jon Jones believes Daniel Cormier might have been regarded as the greatest fighter of all time had the two not competed in the same era.

Speaking during an interview at a Prince Street pizza restaurant in Baton Rouge, Jones said: “Daniel Cormier, I feel as if — if we weren’t part of the same era, I think he would have been considered one of the greatest fighters, if not the greatest fighter of all time.” The praise marks a shift for Jones, who once labelled Cormier an “enemy for life.” The former UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champions shared one of the most heated rivalries in MMA, which boiled over when they brawled at a press conference in 2014. Jones beat Cormier by decision at UFC 182 in 2015 and knocked him out in their rematch, a result later overturned to a no contest.

Jones also used the interview to propose a truce, saying he wanted to let bygones be bygones over a pizza and perhaps hold a meet-and-greet for fans at the restaurant. He pointed to both men being older and sharing a love of food, community and family.

Addressing Cormier directly, Jones said: “So hopefully, if you’re watching, Daniel Cormier, I’ll invite you out here to Baton Rouge. I’ll fly you out. We can have pizza. We can talk. You can show me things about Louisiana. And we can bury the hatchet.” The pair coached against each other on ALT Reality earlier this year, and their exchanges on the show suggested the hostility had already cooled from its peak.

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