The last five years have been an absolute roller coaster of a ride for 205-pound division ace and champion, Jon Jones. After being suspended by the USADA while potentially facing a 4-year ban from the sport, Jones made an unexpected return to the UFC last December. A shortened 15-month suspension was to be fulfilled by Jones after he was found to have tested positive for turinabol metabolites following his UFC 214 win over Daniel Cormier in July of 2017.
In October of 2018, Jones was cleared to fight once again inside the Octagon. A rematch against arch-rival, Alexander Gustafsson, was scheduled to take place as the main event on the UFC 232 card. A week before the fight, Jon Jones yet again tested positive for a picogram amount of turinabol in his system. After being refused a license to fight within the state of Nevada, Jones’ title fight against Gustafsson singly-handedly forced the UFC to shift the event to Inglewood, California. Amidst all the chaos, Jones triumphed over Gustafsson after clinically dominating the rounds, eventually scoring a technical knockout victory in round number three to claim his title.
Soon after his win over Gustafsson, team Jones was quick to respond positively to a fight against top light-heavyweight contender, Anthony ‘Lionheart’ Smith. According to a report by Forbes, Jones is expected to fight as many as three times, this year alone. With an upcoming title fight against Anthony Smith and a possible trilogy against Daniel Cormier, Jones seems all geared up and ready to go.
Now, after all the controversy and just a week left until fight night, Jon Jones seems confident with his approach – “I just needed to stay strong and let it all happen … it took a lot of strength. Today, I stand here knowing no man can hit me as hard as life hit me.”
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