Anthony Johnson shoots down Jon Jones 'stupid' claim that he turned down UFC 197 interim title fight

What really happened the night Daniel Cormier got injured?

Well, one thing is absolutely certain: Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) went scrambling for a short-notice replacement to fight "Bones" in the UFC 197 pay-per-view (PPV) main event, which takes place later this month in Las Vegas, Nevada (more on that card here).

We also know the promotion settled on Ovince Saint Preux, who now has the opportunity of a lifetime which could not only return one of the biggest upsets in the history of the light heavyweight division, but also secure a 205-pound interim title and future showdown against "DC."

That brings us to the curious case of Anthony Johnson.

UFC President Dana White admitted that "Rumble" was his first choice; however, the former welterweight was recovering from dental surgery and medically unfit to compete. Jones, on the other hand, claims Johnson initially accepted the fight, then got cold feet and turned it down (those comments here).

Obviously, that didn't sit well with Johnson, who shot down that "stupid" theory on Instagram (via MMA Junkie).

"Everybody's hitting me up now, all of my friends, saying that Jon is throwing me under the bus or whatever. I never accepted the fight with Jon. The UFC hit me up and asked me about it, but they didn't know anything about that I had dental work done. I had four screws put in my jaw, okay? So why would I accept a fight and then say, ‘No, I don't want to fight him?' That's stupid. I have more sense than that. So, either the UFC is telling this man the wrong thing, or somebody's not telling the truth somewhere in between. Because I got told something different and now I'm hearing Jon is being told this. So, I don't know. I never said okay to the fight. I never said, ‘Yeah.’ So, I just want to let you guys know what the deal was and hopefully we get to the bottom of it because something’s not right. Him being told that I accepted the fight and I never said it. Like I said, I heard something totally different as far as coming from his camp. I heard other things. It is what it is"

For more on how the UFC 197 main event drama started click here and here.