Jon Jones flagged for potential doping violation at UFC 214
Jon Jones looks on prior to a fight against Daniel Cormier in the Light Heavyweight title bout during UFC 214 at Honda Center on July 29, 2017 in Anaheim, California. Credit: Getty Images / Sean M. Haffey
UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was flagged for a potential anti-doping policy violation by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, the UFC announced Tuesday.
The potential violation stems from a sample collected following the weigh-in for his light heavyweight championship bout with Daniel Cormier at UFC 214 last month. Jones won that fight via TKO in the third round to take the championship for the second time in his career.
UFC president Dana White confirmed the potential violation, but said a decision has not been made regarding Jones’ status as UFC champion.
White called the news "unbelievable" mutiple times during a scrum after his Contender Series event on Tuesday night and added that a lengthy suspension "might be the end of his career."
In a statment to MMAFighting.com, Jones' manager Malki Kawa and his camp said the samples would be re-tested.
"We are all at a complete loss for words right now. Jon, his trainers, his nutritionists and his entire camp have worked tirelessly and meticulously the past 12 months to avoid this exact situation," the statement said. "We are having the samples tested again to determine the validity or source of contamination. Jon is crushed by this news and we are doing whatever we can as a team, to support him."
Jones, 30, would be facing his second suspension from USADA if the potential violation is upheld. He was pulled three days ahead of a scheduled bout against Cormier in 2016 after testing positive for two banned substances. Jones served a one-year ban for that violation, although USADA suspensions typically carry a two-year ban for first-time violators and longer suspension for multiple-time offenders.
A Rochester native, Jones also ran into trouble in 2015 when he was arrested on felony hit-and-run charges following a crash that injured a pregnant woman. He also was arrested on DWI charges in Binghamton in 2012.
