While Jon Jones’ arrest for violating his probation could endanger his UFC 197 main event status, sources close to the former champion say that his latest run-in with the law won’t affect his rematch with Daniel Cormier.
UFC 197 headliner Jon Jones has once again been arrested, this time for violating the conditions of his probation, after he was cited for (among other traffic violations) drag racing on March 24th. The ensuing back-and-forth argument between Jones and the police officer was caught on body-cam video and released to the public on Monday.
Jones is currently under 18 months of supervised probation for last year’s hit-and-run, but there is a possibility that the judge could revoke it based on failing to meet the conditions of his probation, at which point Jones’ conviction can become a felony. While the worst case scenario would put the UFC 197 main event of Daniel Cormier vs. Jon Jones II in jeopardy, sources close to Jones told MMA Fighting‘s Ariel Helwani that “they are confident this latest situation will be resolved in short order and that it won’t affect his ability to fight Daniel Cormier on April 23 in Las Vegas.”
Meanwhile, Jon’s management team also released his very brief statement regarding today’s news:
“Jon and his team are taking this very seriously, and we will let the legal process play out.
“We are confident he will be released once he has an opportunity to explain to the judge the facts in this case.”
Jones is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday, April 5th. For the record, Daniel Cormier hasn’t yet said anything on his fierce rival’s newest legal troubles.