Daniel Cormier TV - DC REACTS to Jon Jones calling Tom Aspinall "INCREDIBLY OVERRATED" vs. Ciryl Gane

Summary

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Daniel Cormier TV: DC Reacts to Jon Jones Calling Tom Aspinall "Incredibly Overrated" vs. Ciryl Gane

Podcast: The Herd with Colin Cowherd
Episode Date: November 9, 2025
Host: Daniel Cormier
Topic: Jon Jones’ critique of Tom Aspinall following Aspinall’s fight with Ciryl Gane

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Daniel Cormier dives into Jon Jones’ recent comments about heavyweight contender Tom Aspinall—specifically Jones’ assessment that Aspinall is "incredibly overrated" and a "one trick pony," made after Aspinall’s fight with Ciryl Gane. Cormier unpacks the psychology behind Jones’ remarks, analyzes Aspinall’s fight, and asks listeners whether Jones is being unfair or simply behaving like any top-tier fighter scouting a potential rival.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Jon Jones’ Mindset and Social Media Antics

• Cormier highlights how the lead up to and aftermath of Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane stirred Jon Jones into action—both on social media and with direct comments.
  • Jones changed his profile photo to a duck (a jab at being called a "duck"), then added an eyepatch after Aspinall’s eye poke, and later posted images referencing "dirty boxing" and the eyepatch.
  • (03:22) "We started to kind of talk or think that Jon Jones would have opinions … It wasn’t subtle. It was very forward the way he approached Aspinall … That’s Jon going at Tom."

2. Analyzing the Fight: How Much Did We Really See?

• Cormier urges caution in judging Aspinall’s skills from just four minutes of action:
  • (05:22) "Guys, that was a four-minute round of a fight. That’s it. They did not fight a long fight to really form an opinion."
  • He points out that Ciryl Gane had more success than expected early on, but it was too short to draw strong conclusions.

3. The Psychology of Fighters Scouting Opponents

• Cormier explains how fighters, when watching potential rivals, fixate on weaknesses rather than strengths.
  • "We as fighters… look for holes. You don’t give them credit for what they do well." (09:00)
  • Cormier shares that his own work as a commentator actually made him a better, more objective analyst (and fighter)—since it forced him to recognize opponents’ strengths.
    • "Commentary taught me that … I became a better fighter because I was calling [fights] and trying to be as neutral as I possibly could." (09:40)

4. Jones’ Specific Critique of Aspinall

• Cormier recaps Jones’ statement (from the No Scripts podcast):
  • Aspinall is “a bit of a one-trick pony”
  • Wrestling and jujitsu are “incredibly overrated”
  • Only has “a beautiful one-two combination”
  • Jones also said he “couldn’t touch Ciryl Gane”
• Cormier’s take:
  • (06:45) "He’s so fast and he sets up his one-two so well … Jones said, in that fight, he was able to pick up on a lot of his patterns. Again, guys, it was four minutes. Four minutes. We don’t know what the next 21 minutes would have looked like."
  • Fighters often can’t help but only see what’s “bad,” downplaying threats.
    • "Everything else sucks, right? The jiu-jitsu sucks. The wrestling sucks. There's a good one-two. Everybody, it’s hard because [Jones] can’t turn that off." (10:15)

5. The Problem with Judging From Small Samples

• Cormier believes the short duration fueled overreaction—because Aspinall hadn’t struggled before, seeing anything less than dominance seemed troubling.
  • "Are we reacting only in this way because we’d never seen him struggle at all? And also, how much could you struggle in four minutes? He had a bloody nose. I think because he had that bloody nose, it made people feel, 'Oh my god, this dude’s in trouble.'" (12:55)
  • Mentions fighters like Khabib Nurmagomedov overcoming early difficulties—reminding listeners how quickly perceptions can change.

6. Inviting Listener Debate

• Cormier wants the audience to weigh in:
  • (13:39) "Let me know—Is Jon Jones being a little too harsh? Can we really form that strong an opinion based on four minutes? Does Tom Aspinall not deserve a little grace?"

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Limitations of Analysis:
  • "Maybe Tom Aspinall isn’t what Jon built him up to be … but I don’t know that we saw enough to form an opinion of his overall game in four minutes. It’s just the truth." (10:55)
• On Fighter Analysis:
  • "When you’re watching someone who’s a potential opponent, you look for holes … That’s why commentary taught me perspective." (09:25)
• On Overreactions:
  • "A lot can change between minute four and minute seven, nine, fifteen, twenty-one … all the way to twenty-five. You guys get the point." (13:20)

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Important Timestamps

• 03:22 — Cormier describes Jones’ social media trolling and setup for his on-record comments.
• 05:22 — Initial breakdown of the short fight and caution on drawing firm conclusions.
• 06:45 — Jones’ statements summarized; Cormier’s counterpoints begin.
• 09:00 — Inside the psychology of elite fighters as analysts.
• 10:55 — Cormier’s core take: You cannot fairly judge Aspinall from just four minutes.
• 13:39 — Calls for listener feedback and debate.

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Tone & Delivery Highlights

Cormier provides frank, thoughtful commentary without being dismissive. He’s self-aware—wondering aloud if his own bias is seeping in—and gives credit to both fighters. The mood is analytical but accessible, inviting fans into the debate while emphasizing critical thinking over internet “rage bait.”

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Summary Takeaways

• Jon Jones is, perhaps predictably, finding fault with Tom Aspinall as a possible rival, using a small sample size to justify his critique.
• Fighters naturally focus on potential threats’ weaknesses—often to their own analytical detriment.
• Tom Aspinall’s skills, especially his one-two combination, remain impressive, but one short (and unusual) round isn’t enough to rewrite the book on him.
• Listeners are urged to question knee-jerk takes, acknowledge the small sample size, and share their own opinions on whether Jones is being too harsh or simply playing the game.

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Transcript

[Daniel Cormier]

This is an I heart podcast.

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[Daniel Cormier]

It's the rage bait. It feels like it's trying to divide people. If we got clear facts, maybe we can calm down a little. NBC News brings you clear reporting. Let's meet at the Facts. Let's move forward from there. NBC News reporting for America.

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[Daniel Cormier]

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Before, it was kind of subtle, right? He changed. Actually, it wasn't subtle. It was very forward in the way that he approached Aspinall. But he didn't approach Aspinall with words. First it was a social media profile photo of him as the duck. Next thing you know, there's an eye patch on the duck same night, right? That's John going to Tom. Then John goes to dirty boxing and he's on the horse and he's wearing the eye patch. That's another shot at Tom Aspinall. But finally, now Jon is speaking about Tom Aspinall. One thing you guys have to understand about this whole thing though, when Jon Jones is getting called a duck, right, when Jon Jones is getting told that Tom Aspinall is the guy that's going to beat him, he's sitting back hoping that something happens to give him a reason to go and downplay that. We spoke about it prior to the fight. I told you guys, if Cirogon won, John Wikonsego, that's the guy he thought was going to beat me. I don't know that that finish isn't more satisfying to a guy like Jones because now he can almost guess what would have happened, even if that might not be true. Tom Aspinall, make no mistake about it, Cirogon was finding a lot of success in round one, more than many people thought that he was going to. But Cyril could have either continued to build or Tom could have completely settled himself and turned that around. Guys, that was a four minute round of a fight. That's it. They did not fight a long fight to really form an opinion. You couldn't really form an opinion as strongly as so many have. I think the reason they formed an opinion in the strong way that they did because they'd never seen Tom struggle at all. But I told you before, to fight, this was easily going to be the hardest thing he'd ever done. Anyhow, Jones now is saying that Tom Aspinall isn't who you or we all said that he is. He was speaking Luis, who was he talking to? He was talking to the no Scripts podcast and he said, hey, Tom is a bit of a one trick pony. He's a great athlete, but I think he's a one trick pony. I believe his wrestling and his jujitsu is, are incredibly overrated. He has a beautiful one, two combination. I got to learn a lot about his patterns. In his last fight, that's really about it. That's the one thing that he's setting up real nice. He couldn't touch Surogan. That's the way that I felt. And. And there's a lot in there. Right? Look, guys, Tom Aspinall does have a great one two. Tom Aspinall's one two is the combination that he has finished all those fights with. It's not. Tom's not hitting guys with left hooks. He's not hitting them with uppercuts. He's throwing a one two. But he's so fast and he sets it up so well with his footwork and ability that most of these heavyweights can't see it, and they can't time it enough to either counter it or just avoid it. They get hit, and Tom hits so hard that he knocks people out with it. Jones said in that fight, he was able to pick up on a lot of his patterns. Again, guys, it was four minutes. Four minutes. We don't know what the next 21 minutes would have looked like. We just don't. We just don't. But we as fighters, when we are watching someone that's a potential opponent or someone that becomes your opponent, you look for holes. You don't give them credit for the things that they do. And that's why I feel that the moment I started doing television in 2012, and I was tasked with calling these guys fights and working at the desk and trying to be as neutral as I possibly could, I became a better fighter because I was calling Volkan Ozdemir's very first fight when he got into the ufc, and I think he fought osp, I called that fight. So I'm watching this young kid, right, that's doing all these things well, and I was, like, giving him credit for doing those things well. So when he became my opponent later, I still had to recall the credit I gave him for the things that he did well instead of watching that same fight and finding only holes in his game, because those aren't real. They're not real. But that's what Jones is doing. Jones is watching Aspinall only as a potential opponent. So in that he's going well, that's bad, and this is bad, well, he doesn't do this very well. Then he finds that one thing he can give him credit for. But everything else sucks, right? The Jiu Jitsu sucks. The wrestling sucks. There's a good one, too. Everybody. It's hard because he can't turn that off. He can't turn off that One day he may fight Tom Aspinall, but you have to look at it with a clear mind. But again, commentary taught me that. Not me, the fighter, because I could never give guys credit before I started calling their fights. I called Anthony Johnson's last fight against Alexander Gustafson before we fought for the title. And I remember being so impressed when he beat him, and I remember watching him beat Phil Davis and going, wow, Anthony's gotten so much better. He does this well, he does this well, he does this well. So when I got knee octagon, I'm like, well, I gotta avoid this, this and this, because I know how good he is at it. Maybe Tom Aspinall isn't what Jon built him up to be in his mind prior to that fight, but I don't know that we saw enough to form an opinion of his overall game in four minutes. It's just the truth. It's just the truth. Jones then went on to say, let me see here, I'm trying to find it. He said he couldn't touch Cyril at all. That's the way I felt. I felt gone, was getting warmed up, his hands were down, he was shaking his shoulders, he was bouncing around, touching him. He was so comfortable. That all is true. That's all true. I thought Cyril looked really good. He's bouncing, he's moving. He looked like he was gaining in confidence. He looked like he was gaining in confidence. But are we ready to say that that was going to happen for 25 minutes? Cyril Khan's a big guy. To be able to move like that for 25 minutes is hard. Maybe he could. We've seen him do it at times. He was going to be pressed, but I don't know that we saw enough to form that strong an opinion. Or maybe I'm just hating on Jones. I don't know. I don't know. But I need you guys to help me with it. So in those comments, let me know. Is Jon Jones being a little bit too harsh? Like, can we really form that strong an opinion based on four minutes? Does Tom Aspinall not deserve a little grace? And are we reacting only in this way because we'd never seen him struggle at all? And also, how much could you struggle in four minutes? He had a bloody nose. I think because he had that bloody nose, it made people feel, oh, my God, this dude's in trouble. But again, there's still 21 minutes left in the fight. I watch Habib Nuromedov lose a round to Justin Gaethje and end up submitting them afterwards and overtaking the fight. A lot can change between minute four and minute seven, 9, 15, 21, all the way to 25. You guys get the point. Can we make that strong an opinion of that fight based on four minutes? All right, you guys let me know. Let me know those comments. Let's get that debate going on that until next time guys. Like subscribe and tell your friends about my YouTube channel. Peace.

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[Daniel Cormier]

This is an I Heart podcast.