The hit-and-run case of the now-former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones shook up MMA in a big way, and things may not settle down any time soon. According to Jones’ manager, Malki Kawa, fight fans might have to just start coming to terms with a Bones-free sport.
Speaking with MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani on Monday’s edition of the MMA Hour (via Marc Raimondi of MMAFighting.com), Kawa said Jones’ UFC 182 victory over Daniel Cormier “could very well be the last time we’ve seen Jon Jones in the Octagon.”
“I think Jon Jones is gonna focus on Jon Jones. I think he’s gonna take the time to do whatever he’s gotta do,” Kawa added. “And if it’s the last time we’ve seen him fight, it’s the last time we’ve seen him fight. And I’m OK with that.”
Jones has long been regarded as the greatest mixed martial artist in the sport today, and he has often been referred to as the greatest of all time. However, for all his talent and all his in-cage brilliance, trouble has never been too far away from Bones.
In 2012, Jones was arrested on DUI charges for crashing his Bentley into a telephone pole while intoxicated. In 2014, an out-of-competition drug test was flagged due to the presence of cocaine metabolites.
The proverbial last straw, however, came in April 2015, when Jones allegedly fled the scene of a car accident. According to eye witnesses, Jones ran a red light and crashed into a vehicle driven by a pregnant woman. Jones then reportedly fled the scene on foot after grabbing a fistful of cash from his rented SUV. He turned himself into police the next day and was quickly released on $2,500 bail, but the UFC proceeded to strip him of his title and indefinitely suspend him.
When talking with Helwani, Kawa was vague regarding why Jones may be ready to hang up his gloves, but he spoke at length about the pressures Jones and other all-time greats have dealt with as UFC champions:
It’s not just him, that’s what I’m trying to tell you. You see it with GSP, you see it with Anderson….If he ever doesn’t come back to the sport, it’s because he doesn’t want to come back to the sport. If it was because of too much pressure? Could be. If it’s because of the belt? Could be. If it’s because the competition is too much, it could be. Whatever he decides is the reason why he won’t come back to the sport, but it’ll be solely on him…If this is the last time we’ve ever seen him fight and it very well may be, then it’s because of a decision he’s decided to make.
Kawa also said he felt the chances of Jones returning were “50-50.”
It is impossible to tell at this point when Jones could potentially return to the cage. It is worth noting that Anthony “Rumble” Johnson was suspended indefinitely by the UFC in 2014 surrounding new developments in a 2012 domestic abuse case, but he was reinstated less than two months later after a civil case was dropped.
The timetable for Jones’ return will likely hinge on whether or not he receives jail time for the hit-and-run incident and, if he does, how long his sentence is for.
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