Last night Dana White revealed that Jon Jones will now be fighting Ovince St. Preux in the main event of UFC 197 on April 23rd, and went on to explain why the light-heavyweight interm title will now be on the line.
“It will [be for the interim title],” Dana White announced on ESPN’s SportsCenter. “It will still be the main event. It will be five rounds for the light heavyweight interim title.
“Jon has never lost his title in the Octagon. He was stripped of his title because of problems outside. We think it’s the right thing to do. It’s not [Jones’] fault Cormier is injured. He will fight for the interim light heavyweight title and then when Cormier comes back, they’ll decide who the real champ is.”
White also explained why current No.2 contender Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson wasn’t picked instead of OSP to challenge Jones.
“Obviously, the No. 1 choice would be Anthony Johnson, who is the No. 2-ranked guy in the world and a fight that everybody wants to see,” White told ESPN. “But Anthony Johnson just had surgery on his mouth and can’t even put a mouthpiece in for at least three weeks.”
So Jones Vs OSP tops the bill later this month, with a flyweight title encounter between Demetrious Johnson and Henry Cejudo remaining in the co-main event spot, with Anthony Pettis Vs Edson Barboza below that.
