'Sad' Jon Jones can't find African-American bond with a 'hater' like Daniel Cormier

Former Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion Daniel Cormier, who made his Octagon debut at UFC on FOX 7 earlier this year in San Jose, California, holds wins over three of the world's 10-best heavyweights, and could add a fourth when he tangles with Roy Nelson at UFC 166 next month in Houston, Texas.

Not bad for a guy with a short reach, bad cardio and 28,000 Twitter followers.

If "DC" manages to upend "Big Country" on Oct. 19 in the "Lone Star State," you can expect him to declare his intention of moving down to light heavyweight to call out the winner of Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson, who do battle for "Bones'" belt at UFC 165 this Saturday night (Sept. 21) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

But Jones tells MMA Fighting the former Olympian doesn't deserve it.

"To be honest with you, I don't think Daniel Cormier really deserves a big fight. I don't respect him as a person. I think fighting me would be an opportunity of a lifetime for him. I don't think I have much to gain from beating Daniel Cormier because no one knows who he is, and he hasn't really proved much. He seems to really not like me and be a big hater of mine. It's sad, considering we're both African-American and there's not many of us in the sport. We should try to find a common bond. We don't need to be friends, but we should at least respect each other. It's pathetic that me and Rashad have such a bad relationship and me and Daniel have such a bad relationship."

That's the kind of thing that can happen when you nearly come to blows at the World MMA Awards.

Cormier intends to abandon the 265-pound weight class to avoid a potential collision against friend and teammate Cain Velasquez, unless Junior dos Santos upsets the apple cart in their heavyweight trilogy, also at UFC 166. By contrast, Jones had no problem competing against Rashad Evans, who welcomed him to the Greg Jackson gym when "Bones" was still a rising star.

Despite a UFC 145 grudge match, Jones and Evans have yet to reconcile.

That leaves the champ with very few options when it comes to a "common bond." The sport of mixed martial arts (MMA), for all intents and purposes, is still in its infancy, so that will likely change as time goes one. Until then, "Bones" is going to have to keep on, keepin' on.

For more on the Jones/Cormier feud click here.