Jon Jones may be the greatest talent the sport of mixed martial arts has ever known but he’s also missed a lot of time in his prime due to issues outside the cage.
Jones is currently on provisional suspension stemming from a positive drug test in 2017 that overturned his knockout win against Daniel Cormier and ultimately cost him the UFC light heavyweight title.
That incident came after Jones spent another year on suspension for a separate positive drug test and that’s following a hit-and-run accident in 2015 that also ended with the light heavyweight title being stripped away as well as a lengthy suspension from the sport. Add to that, Jones had previously been charged with a DUI after slamming his Bentley into a telephone pole in New York several years ago.
Because of all these numerous issues, Jones has missed significant time inside the cage and remains on the sidelines today because of those same problems.
“Imagine if he tried even a little bit. How incredibly amazing this guy could have been” ~ Dana White on Jon Jones
That’s what frustrates UFC president Dana White the most when addressing the Jones’ situation because he knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that the former champion could probably be the greatest fighter in the history of combat sports — if he could just stop getting in his own way.
“The whole Jon Jones thing drives me crazy,” White told the MMA Roasted podcast. “Honestly, Jon Jones — the greatest of all time, the greatest to ever do it — and the thing that’s really frustrating, imagine if this guy tried. Imagine if he tried even a little bit. How incredibly amazing this guy could have been.
“He could have been the biggest star ever. God knows what he would have finished accomplishing in light heavyweight and then in the heavyweight division, maybe he would have had a title defense [record] at heavyweight that would never been broken. The endorsements, everything that that guy could have been is unbelievable.”
As it stands, Jones has no titles around his waist right now and he’s missed out on numerous paydays as a result of his absence from the sport.
There’s still no word on when Jones will be eligible to return to action as USADA will ultimately decide his fate following his positive drug test for steroids in 2017.
Jones faces up to a four year suspension for a second infraction of the UFC’s anti-doping policy.
Do you think Jon Jones can finally turn it around when he comes back? Sound off in the comments and let us know.
