Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier gave fans a special treat—and the UFC promotional brass a massive headache—when they came to blows while doing a media staredown.
Jones got in Cormier's face. Cormier shoved Jones back. Jones threw a punch. UFC public relations bigwig Dave Sholler got knocked through the back of the set. The two light heavyweights fell back into the potted plants behind the UFC banner.
All right in front of the assembled MMA media!
Naturally, Twitter blew up with the news, with reactions and details breaking. It all started with an ominous tweet by Bleacher Report's own Jeremy Botter:
Jon jones and Daniel Cormier just got in a massive brawl
— Jeremy Botter (@jeremybotter) August 4, 2014
From there, other members of the media began confirming the news:
Brawl. DC shoved Jones. Jones went after him, got on top threw punches. DC tried to kick him. Serious punches.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) August 4, 2014
O pau comeu solto no media day em Las Vegas. Cormier e Jones saíram na mão sério. PPV será monstruoso.
— Guilherme Cruz (@guicruzzz) August 4, 2014
Then came the pictures. Again, all this took place in front of the assembled MMA media, so photos are aplenty. Here are the highlights of the before, during and after:
Oh here's the staredown DC& Jones pic.twitter.com/dLfswAVBgq
— Heidi Fang (@HeidiFang) August 4, 2014
This is pretty much everyone's nightmare. “@GrabakaHitman: Help. pic.twitter.com/gsy1VP8pGF”
— Kenny Florian (@kennyflorian) August 4, 2014
Crazy brawl in the lobby of the MGM Grand during @ufc media day staredown between Jones and Cormier. The aftermath pic.twitter.com/rlWfAY1fMQ
— Adam Hill (@AdamHillLVRJ) August 4, 2014
Then came the video footage:
Caught this all on video!! http://t.co/i0zoZkS39t
— Cynthia Vance (@cynthiavance) August 4, 2014
Then, of course, came the reactions. Overnight star Conor McGregor ended up being a major star in all this:
Remember when people said Jones-Cormier was more marketable than Jones-Gustafsson? This is why.
— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) August 4, 2014
Jon Jones celebrating and screaming to the crowd after the brawl = questionable. Conor McGregor's face the whole time = awesome.
— Mike Bohn (@MikeBohnMMA) August 4, 2014
Bahahaha. RT @SeanyLawson: @TheNotoriousMMA getting in selfies durning the bust up ?????? pic.twitter.com/x8edbdcssT
— Mike Bohn (@MikeBohnMMA) August 4, 2014
Jones and Cormier weren't done after the brawl, though. They kept the fight going on Twitter not long after:
Lol those baby punches from the bottom, I really hope you have more prepared than that for when I take you down again
— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) August 4, 2014
"@JonnyBones: Come on DC where was your takedown defense?" I got some td def for you. Don't ever put ur dirty face on me again.
— Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) August 4, 2014
Put some ice on that face DC, you got lots of interviews tomorrow
— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) August 4, 2014
When MMA Junkie put out a lengthy video of the brawl, the dangerous side of impromptu fights came to light:
@mmaencyclopedia Pretty sure.
— Brent Brookhouse (@brentbrookhouse) August 4, 2014
Anyone know the name of the dude on the stage in the black-rimmed glasses who got smashed by that Jones left hand? Security guard? Poor guy.
— Adam Martin (@MMAdamMartin) August 4, 2014
The Malki Kawa "punch" frame by frame. Clearly trying to grab DC to break it up @MMASupremacy http://t.co/g5r6guz5zX
— MolesyMMA (@MolesyMMA) August 4, 2014
Of course, any discussion of something related to a pay-per-view bout will inevitably end up circling back to how it will impact the buyrates. Naturally, most fans and media members became even more bullish on how the event will perform:
This might be the thing that makes Jones a PPV draw. I got a tiny bit depressed typing that.
— Iain Kidd (@iainkidd) August 4, 2014
Just saw the Jones-Cormier dustup. Well, that's not gonna be bad for box office. Long-term though, not a great look.
— Mike Chiappetta MMA (@MikeChiappetta) August 4, 2014
Conspiracy: The brawl was orchestrated to increase PPV buys.
— CagePotato.com (@cagepotatomma) August 4, 2014
And naturally, the next step involves what will come from the Nevada State Athletic Commission regarding the brawl:
NSAC reserves comment on Jon Jones-Daniel Cormier brawl, promises review http://t.co/RbtSNyQxDa via @MMAjunkie
— MMAjunkie (@MMAjunkie) August 4, 2014
Finally, fans and media alike can find a new hero in Sholler, who was brave enough to try and get in between Jones and Cormier:
I'm completely fine, guys. Thanks for the support. I WANT THAT BELT!
— Dave Sholler (@Sholler_UFC) August 4, 2014
