Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports.

This Week’s Jon Jones Drama Has Led Us to Ask The Question: What Legacy Will Jon Jones Leave Behind? Will He Be Remembered as a Multiple UFC Light-Heavyweight Champion and the Greatest MMA Fighter of All Time? Or Has That Ship Sailed and is His Reputation Tarnished Forever?

Whatever you think about Jon Jones, there’s absolutely no denying that the man has got talent. The big question is where does the talent stop and the cheating begin. In the eyes of many fans, he’s still the greatest UFC fighter of all time. He’s a three-time UFC light-heavyweight champion, with the chance to win the belt for the fourth time in his rematch with Swedish hero, Alexander Gustafsson.

However, controversy after controversy has followed ‘Bones’ throughout his career. Let’s be real, nobody cares if he’s doing coke and having his way with hookers. It’s his money, he can do what he wants. However, when it comes to PED use, and after he tested for Turinabol, doubt is always going to linger.

Minute traces of Turinabol were found in his system again in test samples that were provided to the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Both USADA and the UFC have resolutely defended Jones, saying that the traces are merely lingering from 2017 and the fight was rescheduled. However, many fans are sick of the legendary fighter. Is their anger justified, or do they have to look at the bigger picture?

Jon Jones fights Daniel Cormier. Mandatory Credit: Gary Vasquez, USA TODAY Sports.

Talent

Jones was a sensational talent when he broke onto the field. Unbeaten in MMA – no, we’re not counting that ridiculous disqualification against Matt Hammill. He still holds the records for the most consecutive title defences in the light-heavyweight division, and the longest winning run in the division.

The New York native also became the youngest champion in the history of the organization – after they introduced weight classes. Add to the fact that he’s never been defeated in a championship fight, beating everybody put in front of him, and only losing his belts because of his own demons. This leads many fans to consider him the UFC’s GOAT. Only the likes of Demetrious Johnson, Georges St. Pierre and Khabib Nurmagamedov have records that compare.

Jan 2, 2015; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Jon Jones during the weigh-in for his Light Heavyweight Title Bout against Daniel Cormier (not pictured) at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports.

Dark Side

Unfortunately, Jones has turned many fans against him after his second drug test failure. The first one came in 2016. Clomiphene and Letrozole were found in his system before his UFC 200 bout with none other than Daniel Cormier. He was hit with a one-year ban. The second time he failed a drugs test was after KOing Cormier in 2017. This time he was handed a 14-month sentence.

Add in the eye pokes, the massive increase of goodwill towards ‘DC’ and Jones’s fake ‘Holier than Thou’ personality and it’s not hard to see why fans have turned against him in large numbers. For many fans, this is just a bridge too far. They can overlook his extracurricular activities, but when it comes to cheating, it’s just too much.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2ZLj3Q8-6I

Resentful

Former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping is one of the harshest critics of PED use in MMA. Numerous opponents including the likes of Vitor Belfort and Anderson Silva have tested positive for banned substances after fighting ‘The Count.’ He slammed Jones on his podcast, ‘Believe You Me,’ saying:

“If they’re saying that this is just, you know, a knock-on effect, or it’s just from when he took Turinabol the first time and it’s in his system. well.  you shouldn’t have taken it the f**king first time! 

If you weren’t taking it in the first place it wouldn’t have been there. And guess what: if it’s still in there, then maybe you shouldn’t be fighting at all. Maybe the ban wasn’t long enough. Maybe the ban should be until you’re clear when there’s no Turinabol in your system, no performance-enhancing drugs in your system. Then you can compete again.”

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