According to Malki Kawa, manager and friend to Jon Jones, the former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Light Heavyweight champion of the world lost out on an eight-figure payday for not fighting at UFC 200 against Daniel Cormier.
And it’s all thanks to “Bones” getting flagged by United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) for an out-of-competition drug test (details). But, according to UFC’s Jon Anik, Jones can stand to lose close to a total $30 million after his latest infraction depending on how long he is sidelined for. He broke it all down during a recent episode of the Anik and Florian podcast.
“The financial swing for Jones here is absolutely incredible. I’m sure for fans that’s not their foremost concern, but we’re sort of advancing the story a little bit here or at least talking about this several days after it happened. Antoine Walker, former Boston Celtic, made over $100 million in the NBA and blew all of it. Jon Jones is almost the opposite of that. The untold millions he isn’t realizing because he can’t make the walk in certain spots in his career. Now, they say he might have made from UFC 200 alone, so if he’s suspended for 12 months or 24 months, Kenny, that might be like a 25 or $30 million loss by ingesting whatever supplement he popped for.”
Wow.
Jones — who has maintained his innocence — is set to appear before Nevada State Athletic Commission on July 18 for his first hearing on the matter. Though his punishment won’t likely be determined there, “Bones” is facing up to a two-year suspension from the sport.
Hence the millions and millions in potential losses.
In Jon’s absence, Anderson Silva stepped in to face Cormier at UFC 200, losing a unanimous decision to the current 205-pound champion (see it). No fret, he — as well as most of the participants on the monumental card — got paid handsomley for his efforts.
At the end of the day, Jones, it seems, is not only taking a hit to his reputation, but his bank account, too.