Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier set to coach Russian reality show
Former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champions Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier will coach opposite one another on a Russian reality show called ALF Reality.
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The show, in its third season, is produced by ALF Global and focuses on intense conflict between team captains and fighters. It has previously featured notable fighters like Nate Diaz, Jorge Masvidal, Petr Yan, and Aljamain Sterling.
Jones served previously as a coach on the show along with Diaz but left filming after an insane brawl broke out on set.
The history between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier stands as one of the most intense and personal rivalries in mixed martial arts.
It all began innocently enough in 2010 backstage at UFC 121, when a young Jon Jones—already a rising phenom—approached Daniel Cormier (then competing in Strikeforce) with a casual challenge: “I bet I could take you down.” The former Olympic wrestler took offense, and what started as a light jab quickly grew into genuine animosity that would span more than a decade.
The bad blood simmered for years as both men rose through the ranks—Jones dominating the light heavyweight division as champion, Cormier entering the UFC undefeated and eventually capturing the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix. Tensions boiled over publicly in 2014 when they were booked for UFC 178 (“Bitter Rivals”). A heated press conference escalated into a chaotic brawl, with both fighters exchanging insults and nearly coming to blows onstage.
The fight was postponed after Jones suffered a knee injury, but the delay only intensified the feud. They finally met at UFC 182 on January 3, 2015, with Jones defending his light heavyweight title. In a grueling five-round war, Jones edged out Cormier via unanimous decision, handing “DC” his first professional loss. The buildup featured vicious trash talk, including Jones taunting Cormier with lines like “Hey pussy, are you still there?” while Cormier fired back with deep personal barbs.
Their rematch came at UFC 214 in July 2017. Jones, having regained the belt after Cormier’s interim run, knocked Cormier out in the third round with a devastating head kick and follow-up strikes. What should have been a decisive victory was overturned to a no-contest weeks later when Jones tested positive for a banned substance (turinabol metabolites), leading to his title being stripped and Cormier reinstated as champion.
The rivalry never fully cooled. Even after Cormier moved up to heavyweight, won the title, and retired in 2020 as a two-division champion and UFC Hall of Famer, the two continued trading barbs online and in interviews. Jones ascended to heavyweight champion himself in 2023.
