First fight — UFC 182

Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier met for the first time in the Octagon on January 3, 2015, headlining UFC 182 in Las Vegas. Jones entered as the reigning light heavyweight champion and won by unanimous decision, with all three judges scoring the bout 49–46 in his favor [1]. The fight included five scheduled rounds for the title; Jones used range, clinch control, takedown defense and moments of wrestling to retain the belt. Cormier, a former Olympian and top contender, pushed pace during portions of the match and secured moments of offense but failed to turn those into a score swing large enough to win rounds. Immediate reactions included standard post-fight media scrutiny about the nature of the decision and how it affected each fighter’s legacy: outlets recorded the official result and statistics as the authoritative record of the contest [1]. The fight is frequently cited as the competitive starting point for the Jones–Cormier rivalry because it was their first sanctioned title meeting and produced a clear official outcome. Names directly involved: Jon Jones (champion/fighter), Daniel Cormier (challenger/fighter), and the three official judges (scoring 49–46 each) who recorded the unanimous decision [1].

The January 3, 2015 result at UFC 182 created a documented, official baseline for the Jones–Cormier rivalry: Jones held the in-cage victory on the record, while Cormier retained a narrative argument about unfinished business. That singular official outcome framed later disputes over rematches, title lineage and career legacy. Because the rivalry later included administrative reversals and public taunting, the clean, documented nature of UFC 182’s result provided an important contrast to later contested outcomes and anti-doping adjudications [1].

Following UFC 182, anticipation built for a rematch given both fighters’ status as the top two light heavyweights. The match at UFC 182 remained on the record as a Jones victory and served as the official fight result referenced during later interactions, social-media exchanges and promotional buildup to future rematches. The first fight did not resolve personal animus; instead, later episodes — including a March 2016 Instagram exchange and anti-doping issues that delayed a rematch — escalated the dispute beyond the Octagon [5][4].