Teammate says Daniel Cormier is a completely new fighter ahead of Jon Jones rematch
Spanish heavyweight kickboxer Frank Munoz has fought the best of the best strikers, all over the world. He's also long, rangy and unorthodox at times.
So, he felt he'd be a perfect training partner to help UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier prepare to rematch his rival Jon Jones at UFC 197. Of course, the fight sadly fell through quite close to the scheduled date because of an injury Cormier sustained.
However, after Jones won a decision over replacement Ovince Saint Preux last week, Cormier vs. Jones II was rescheduled for July at UFC 200 in Las Vegas. Munoz recently spoke with The Underground's Jonathan Shrager to discuss what training camp with Cormier was like, and how DC has improved and gotten ready to beat Jones.
"I wasn't here a year ago when they fought Jon Jones the first time, but with Javier Mendez, the head coach, we watched the first fight a thousand times to make a strategy, a game plan," he said.
"Honestly, [Cormier] was a completely new fighter ... much more complete. His conditioning is also amazing. We were sparring three, five, six, seven rounds in a row and he was like nothing. He was in beast mode."
In Munoz's mind, Cormier fought Jones evenly for most of their 2015 five-round war. Only in the last two rounds did Jones manage to edge Cormier out thanks to superior conditioning, Munoz said.
"In the first three rounds, the fight was 50/50. About even," he insisted.
"The last two rounds, Cormier slowed down, he gassed-out a little bit, and then that was when Jon Jones won, clearly."
With improved conditioning and more well-rounded skills, Munoz believes that Cormier was already prepared to beat Jones this month. With a few more months to sharpen his sword, the kickboxer is confident that his new teammate can still get it done at UFC 200.
