UFC superstar Jon “Bones” Jones was arrested by the Las Vegas PD on Friday morning. Initial reports indicate that he is being charged with misdemeanour battery domestic violence, and tampering with a vehicle, which is a felony. Jones is scheduled to appear in court Saturday at 1:30pm.
The Jones camp has issued no comment for the time being. UFC president Dana White, never one to mince words, had a markedly different take on things: “It’s hard to bring this guy to Las Vegas, for any reason…This city is not good for Jon Jones, and here we are again…It’s not even shocking anymore. When we bring him here, it’s almost expected. We can’t even get him to Las Vegas for less than 12 hours and induct him into the Hall of Fame. It’s a problem. This guy’s got a lot of demons, man, a lot of demons.”
The 34 year old Jones is widely regarded as one of the most skilled fighters to ever enter the octagon. With a career record of 26-1, his lone loss came on a controversial DQ in 2009 for throwing an illegal elbow against Matt Hamill. Yet for all his accomplishments inside the cage, Jones’ legacy has had more than its fair share of controversies over the years.
From an athletics standpoint, Jones has failed random drug tests on 4 separate occasions. It was announced ahead of UFC 182, 200, 214, and 232 that the light heavyweight would be unable to compete due to drug test related issues. Jones’ camp maintains he’s done nothing wrong from a doping standpoint in his UFC career.
Outside the UFC, Jones is no stranger to law enforcement officials, having been arrested four times since 2012. In May of 2012 Jones was arrested for DUI after crashing his car in New York. In April of 2015, he was arrested in his now infamous hit and run case, where he fled the scene of the crime. Jones was also arrested last year for an aggravated DWI offense, where he allegedly fired a gun under the influence and failed to provide proof of insurance.
With these latest allegations, there’s rampant speculation about whether fans will ever see Jones compete in the UFC again, or whether he deserves another opportunity at all at this point. Undoubtedly one of the most talented fighters of his generation, even the most ardent of Jones supporters has to be getting tired of defending his actions outside the octagon.
Jones was preparing for a return at Heavyweight, hoping to add that belt to his long list of MMA achievements. It is not immediately clear what kind of penalties the UFC will levy on Jones as a result of his latest arrest.
Prosecutors now have until October 26th to file criminal charges for Friday’s incident. Jones, Caesars Entertainment Inc, and Jackson Wink Academy have all declined to comment publicly at this time. Story developing.