Daniel Cormier nixes Jon Jones title defense in New York: Why should I allow him to fight where he's comfortable?

Daniel Cormier wants a rematch with embattled former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) superstar Jon Jones, but don't expect him to do "Bones" any favors.

"DC" defended his light heavyweight title last night (Oct. 3, 2015) at the UFC 192 pay-per-view (PPV) in Houston, Texas via split decision against Alexander Gustafsson (highlights here) in what was a five-round, bloody battle. The winner of the headliner was expected to draw Jones, who awaits UFC's decision to reinstate him after escaping jail time (video) with a sentence of 18 months of supervised probation for his role in a hit-and-run incident last April.

UFC has booked an event in "The Big Apple's" Madison Square Garden next April and with Jones -- who made a name for himself on the regional mixed martial arts (MMA) scene on the east coast -- being born in Rochester, New York, a title clash between both men could do huge numbers.

"Why should I allow this guy to go and fight where he's comfortable?" Cormier said at the post-fight press conference (via MMAFighting). "No, he has to go somewhere where he has to look at people in the eyes and hear the anger they have toward him for the actions that he did."

The 28-year-old hasn't fought in the Octagon since taking a unanimous-decision victory over Cormier at UFC 182 back in January. After testing positive for cocaine metabolites prior to his title defense over the American Kickboxing Academy product, Jones injured a pregnant woman in the aforementioned hit-and-run in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where his Jackson-Winkeljohn training camp is located.

Jones has sporadically shown up training with teammates in Albuquerque, speaking with children at a local Boys & Girls Club and posing for pictures with kids at his wrestling coaches' camp, before emerging on Instagram with a couple of videos related to his return to fighting and Cormier's performance.

Not only has he looked to improve his stock in the public eye, but he has also been bulking quite a bit.

When the pair eventually settle their score inside the Octagon, the 36-year-old Cormier doesn't want to tip the scales to the side of the former pound-for-pound great.

"I just think at the end of the day, when Jones gets reinstated, New York is the only place that he'll be welcomed without just venomous anger," Cormier said. "This is where he's from. So they will actually care for him. They will cheer him. Just as you take me to Lafayette, Louisiana, it doesn't matter what I do. They will cheer me."

And judging by Jon's recent Instagram post, a rematch between the two talented fighters may be closer than we think.

For more on the fallout from the UFC 192: "Cormier vs. Gustafsson" fight card, click here.