Daniel Cormier has mixed thoughts – not all of them good – about the fake brawl staged by UFC champion Jon Jones and Anthony Johnson at this past Saturday’s “UFC: Welcome to the Show” press conference.

During a face-off to promote their light-heavyweight title fight at UFC 187 on May 23, Jones (21-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) and Johnson (19-4 MMA, 10-4 UFC) butted heads then pretended they were about to brawl, much to the shock of the man in the middle, a clearly alarmed UFC President Dana White.

The staged brawl was, of course, an homage to the real brawl between Jones and Cormier at media event last year prior to their bout at UFC 181 in January (watch it below). The brawl footage was replayed endlessly in the leadup to the event, but both fighters were punished for their actions.

For a brief moment, it looked as if Jones hadn’t learned his lesson. But it quickly became apparent “Bones” and Johnson were both in on the joke, which “Rumble” later admitted to orchestrating.

While Cormier said he saw some humor in the action, he believes Johnson made a crucial error by showing a lighthearted attitude toward his opponent.

“That whole little thing they did at the press conference, you don’t want to do that as a challenger,” Cormier said on UFC 184’s post-fight show on FOX Sports 1. “Why would Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson want to be Jon Jones’ friend? I understand good sportsmanship, but don’t let him goad you into playing games with him. You are coming to take that guy’s livelihood. You’re his opponent. You go out and get that guy.”

While Cormier and Jones had an immense amount of tension and couldn’t be in close proximity to each other without a physical or verbal altercation, Johnson is typically respectful and rarely has issues with opponents.

Cormier said he’s in no way encouraging Johnson to leave his comfort zone to manufacture drama with Jones. He does, however, view the jokes as a major sign of weakness.

“Don’t be his friend and get you to be buddy-buddy with him,” Cormier said. “Don’t give him any comfort. Go after him and intimidate him. They’re going to fight in May, so you don’t need to go out and do it at the press conference. But again, I kind of disagree with that.

“It’s a game of inches, and you don’t want to concede to the champion that he can actually draw you in. It was pretty funny. They missed a couple things when they were in the back doing their choreography for their little skit in the back. They forgot a couple things.”

While Jones and Johnson don’t fight until May 23, Cormier is already picking a winner for the fight. He holds Johnson in high regard, but after spending five rounds in the octagon with the champ in January, Cormier predicts the belt will stay put.

“I love ‘Rumble’ Johnson, I think he’s great, and I think he has a fantastic chance,” Cormier said. “But I believe Jones is going to win.

For the latest on UFC 187, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

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