I know its been a while since I have written anything, but this subject I felt that I had to give my opinion. Jones has been the poster boy for the UFC. He was the first sponsored by its apparel brand. In addition, he was featured in many of the UFC's main sponsors, including Bud Light. This is no surprise as he seemed like an individual he lived the martial arts lifestyle. He was a father of two who came from humble beginnings and he impressed from his first fight on. Jones was incredible, he was a tall fighter who knew how to use these advantages well. He became champion at 23 (the youngest in the organization's history). He was even deemed a hero when he stopped a mugging in Paterson, NJ before he fought Mauricio "shogun" Rua for the title at UFC 128. His demeanor was pleasant and his treatment of the media made him an excellent candidate to increase the organization's appeal to cross over into the mainstream and gather more eye balls to the screen. Jones along with Ronda Rousey have became the main models of the UFC's new endorsement deal with Reebok.
However, Jones mystique began to fade away with his DUI in 2012 when he crashed his Bentley. Many fighters, have also called him "fake," saying that his on air personality was different from when he was off the record. However, this is understandable as we all wear many hats and many of us have to adapt to our surroundings. From a business perspective, it seems like a great strategy in order to become a fan favorite and to gain the favor of many sponsors. His stock was going to continue to rise after the weekends bout against Daniel Cormier at UFC 182. He now seems invincible and many are calling him the GOAT and the greatest pound for pound fighter.
Jones' announcement that he was going to be entering rehab came as a shock to most of the martial arts community. He issued a public apology to his family and fans. Dana White, president of the UFC, also issued a statement saying how proud he was that he had made this decision. Reports are that Jones tested for cocaine metabolites in early December which was administered out of competition by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Because it was out of competition, there are no penalties associated by the commission for a positive test. Now this has stirred up quite a controversy. On one side there are people who are supportive of Jones' decision and wish him the best and on the other are those who feel that he is receiving special treatment because of his position.
My take on this is that the UFC sets a concerning precedent if it does not take disciplinary action on its champion. The champion is the representative of the organization and thus is the best of that division and he or she must abide by the code of conduct as an example to other fighters in the organization. Other fighters have pointed out what they claim is the UFC's hypocrisy in this matter, citing that other fighters like Matt Riddle and Nick Diaz received lengthy suspensions due to testing positive for marijuana metabolites. However, these were tests done right before or after their bouts. Now the results of this past Saturday are still in the air. If Jones does test for a banned substance it would be interesting if his victory becomes a No Contest and forces the UFC to strip him of his title.
The other issue that was brought up yesterday and is fueling the ire of conspiracy theorists, is the convenience of timing in which the UFC announced that it would no longer do out of competition random testing on its fighters, citing the massive errors that were committed by the organization in handling of samples from Cung Le in last year's event in Macau. And many forums are rampant with people speculating on whether the UFC hid the fact in order for the main event to continue; instead of cancelling the Main Event which would have deeply hurt the organization as it was trying to rebound after a shaky 2014 where it saw its rating downgraded by Standard and Poors. Especially since the UFC has confirmed that there were over 750,000 pay-per-view buys.
I can't opine as to this theory as it is mere speculation, although if something happened to the main event it would have certainly hurt those numbers. Fighters with substance abuse issues is nothing new, former heavyweight champion Ricco Rodriguez also struggled with addiction. Hopefully, Jones can get the help he needs and continue to demonstrate his skills in the cage and the UFC can maintain the momentum of its first event of the year despite this setback.
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