UFC 239: Daniel Cormier advises Thiago Santos to ‘just fight your fight’ against Jon Jones

UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier has offered some words of advice to Thiago Santos ahead of his fight with Jon Jones at UFC 239.

Cormier knows exactly how good Jones is having faced the reigning light heavyweight king twice.

Both times ended in defeat for Cormier, although their bout in 2017 was overturned to a no contest after Jones tested positive for Turinabol, an anabolic steroid.

Jones enters the Octagon this Saturday against the Brazilian on the back of a 16-fight unbeaten streak and Cormier has urged underdog Santos to just 'fight his fight.'

“I think Santos needs to go in there and fight his fight,” Cormier said to . “Don’t think about what he has to do different than everybody else, what he needs to do to be better. Just fight your fight. Don’t worry about all that other stuff.

"All that other stuff is just white noise. Worry about Thiago Santos and give yourself a chance. It’s a tall order for him. It’s gonna be a tough fight for him.”

While there are few giving Santos a chance against Jones, he does boast 15 wins by knockout on his record and is known as the 'Sledgehammer' due to his formidable punching power.

However, 31-year-old Jones, who has never been knocked out in his career, is not fazed by his opponent's concussive punches.

“I’m not too concerned with his power,” Jones said.

“I think you could knock me out if I put my hands behind my back and let you punch me in the face! I think every man and woman in this audience is strong enough to knock me out if I let them punch me squarely in the chin.

“Every UFC fighter I’ve ever fought has had the power to knock me out,” Jones said. “It’s about being skilled enough to land that punch. Thus far, no one’s been skilled enough to land that punch, and I don’t think anything is going to change on Saturday night.”

Jon Jones vs Thiago Santos at UFC 239 is live on talkSPORT on 6 July