Tag: Anthony Johnson

Dana White Calls Anderson Silva – Not Jon Jones – GOAT

Earlier today (Wednesday November 9, 2016) UFC President Dana White announced that he stripped Jon Jones of the 205-pound interim championship he won back in April. Jones won the interim strap when he defeated Ovince Saint Preux in the main event of UFC 197, taking home a lopsided unanimous decision win after returning to the Octagon he

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Earlier today (Wednesday November 9, 2016) UFC President Dana White announced that he stripped Jon Jones of the 205-pound interim championship he won back in April.

Jones won the interim strap when he defeated Ovince Saint Preux in the main event of UFC 197, taking home a lopsided unanimous decision win after returning to the Octagon he had been held out of for over a year due to legal troubles. ‘Bones’ was scheduled to unify his title with division champ Daniel Cormier in the main event of UFC 200 in July, however, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) flagged Jones for a violation stemming from an out-of-competition drug test, pulling him off the card on two days notice.

Now Jones has been officially handed a one year suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) and won’t be eligible to compete until Summer of 2017.

While Jones was dealing with the sting of losing a huge payday after being pulled from the main event of UFC 200, former longtime UFC middleweight champ Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva would step in to face Cormier in a three round non-title bout two slots down from the card’s main event, in which Silva would lose via unanimous decision.

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Earlier today on the Dan LeBatard show, courtesy of MMA Mania, White stated that it’s hard not to consider Silva the greatest of all time (GOAT) after Jones’ recent troubles that have held him out of the cage in the prime of his fighting career.

“Yeah, he’s definitely one of the guy’s who could have gone down as one of the greatest ever. If you look at all the time he’s been out, he probably would have defended the title a few times. He might be fighting at heavyweight right now, who knows, but, hey man…when you do what this guy has done, you’ve got to pay the price. Who knows what fights we missed or what could have been because of all this madness. It’s tough to not give that to Anderson Silva. Anderson Silva was doing things at the time that other people couldn’t do. He was so dominant and made it look so easy. There was a point in time when he made that 185-pound division look weak.”

While Jones will have to sit on the sidelines for the time being until he is able to compete again next year, Cormier will now defend the sole light heavyweight title in the division against feared knockout artist Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson in the main event of UFC 207 later this year.

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USADA Suspends Jon Jones For One Full Year

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was hoping for a reduced sentence in the doping case that caused an abrupt halt to his anticipate rematch with longtime rival Daniel Cormier in the main event of July 9’s UFC 200. And many thought that ‘Bones’ would get just that, as his team insisted that his

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Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was hoping for a reduced sentence in the doping case that caused an abrupt halt to his anticipate rematch with longtime rival Daniel Cormier in the main event of July 9’s UFC 200.

And many thought that ‘Bones’ would get just that, as his team insisted that his test failure for banned estrogen-blocking substances clomiphene and Letrozol was due to his ingestion of sexual performance enhancement drug Cialis. Indeed, two previously suspended UFC fighters in middleweight Yoel Romero and welterweight Tim Means were able to receive short six-month bans, yet it appears Jones wasn’t quite as fortunate.

News arrived last week that Jones and his team had finished their arbitration with USADA prior to his meeting with the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) this month, and his attorney Howard Jacobs revealed both sides were unable to come to an amicable settlement. Today we find out why, as Jones has been suspended for one full year dating back to July 9.

A fullly detailed description of the arbitration session, where Jones was found to have a “degree of fault in fact verged on the reckless,” can be read here. Apparently the troubled former champion answered precious few questions about his Cialis use, revealing only who had given him the drug and if it was for a sexual performance purposes.

Jones also did not receive the shorter six-month term Romero and Means did because their cases involved ingesting supplements which contained a banned substance not listed no the label, while Jones simply failed to disclose that he was taking Cialis in his pre-fight questionairre.

In summation, the arbitrators issued a stern decision for Jones’ case, seemingly focused on his nonchalant attitude for what he called a ‘dick pill’ and deeming it a warning for any and all professional fighters in similiar situations:

“On the evidence before the Panel, the Applicant is not a drug cheat. He did not know that the tablet he took contained prohibited substances or that those substances had the capacity to enhance sporting performance. However by his imprudent use of what he pungently referred to as a ‘dick pill’ he has not only lost a year of his career but an estimated nine million dollars. This outcome which he admits to be a wake-up call for him should serve as a warning to all others who participate in the same sport.”

 

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Glover Teixeira: ‘Rumble’ Johnson Hits Too Hard

Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson hits hard. Just ask Glover Teixeira who ate a nasty knockout strike from the former light heavyweight title challenger that sent his tooth flying and shut his lights out after 13-seconds from the opening bell. The pair met in the co-main event of UFC 202 earlier this past August in a highly-anticipated

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Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson hits hard. Just ask Glover Teixeira who ate a nasty knockout strike from the former light heavyweight title challenger that sent his tooth flying and shut his lights out after 13-seconds from the opening bell.

The pair met in the co-main event of UFC 202 earlier this past August in a highly-anticipated 205-pound showdown that was sure to emerge the next challenger for current division champ Daniel Cormier, and it did just that. Teixeira made the unfortunate decision to attempt to stand a trade with one of the most feared strikers in MMA today, and it resulted in him being left unconscious and one tooth short after falling to the Blackzillians product.

Recently Teixeira spoke to AG Fight to discuss the loss to Johnson, stating that the Blackzillian’s team-member has hit him the hardest he has ever been hit in his entire career:

“The fight starts standing, so you have to strike. It’s just like what they told Aldo when he lost to McGregor. There was no time to react, it happens. To be honest, he was the strongest guy to ever hit me. It was the first KO I ever suffered. I had been knocked down in training before where my vision went dark for a little bit, but never like that. He hits too hard and the gloves are very small. Depending on how it hits you, it’s over.”

The flawless performance from Johnson earned him the right to take on Cormier for the light heavyweight title once more, after Cormier choked out ‘Rumble’ in the third round of their initial meeting at UFC 187 back in May of last year.

Cormier and Johnson will meet in the main event of UFC 206 for the light heavyweight title live on pay-per-view (PPV), from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on December 11, 2016.

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Jon Jones’ USADA Arbitration Finished, Punishment Awaits

The latest twist in the strange, disappointing Jon Jones saga appears to be heading for a resolution soon. After claiming that his failed UFC 200 USADA drug test was due to sexual performance medication Cialis, Jones had his case heard before three arbitrators in Santa Monica, California, on Monday (October 31, 2016) according to a

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The latest twist in the strange, disappointing Jon Jones saga appears to be heading for a resolution soon.

After claiming that his failed UFC 200 USADA drug test was due to sexual performance medication Cialis, Jones had his case heard before three arbitrators in Santa Monica, California, on Monday (October 31, 2016) according to a report from MMA Fighting, who revealed the proceedings lasted for 10 hours.

A decision has been reached, and Jones’ legal team, led by Howard Jacobs have asked for an expedited decision before the interim light heavyweight champ is scheduled to go before the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) for his official hearing on November 10. Jones is hoping to receive a shortened suspension after failing for anti-estrogen agents clomiphene and Letrozol in an out-of-competition test on June 16, results that canceled his UFC 200 rematch with Daniel Cormier only three days before the awaited bout was set to go down.

Jones now relies on the tainted supplement defense, the current go-to for USADA-failing fighters that has gained Yoel Romero and Tim Means six-month suspensions in the early days of USADA’s new partnership with the UFC. But Jones was the first fighter to go to arbitration with USADA, and is undoubtedly the most high-profile UFC fighter to run afoul of the acclaimed testing company thus far.

UFC 135: Jones v Rampage - Press Conference

His suspension will most likely be reduced, but the final result is still very much up in the air according to Jacobs:

“I think the evidence all came in and we’re happy with sort of how the case went and now we’re just gonna wait for the decision,” Jacobs said. “It’s out of our hands now. I don’t want to get into the details, but there was a lot of evidence that was heard and a lot of argument,” Jacobs said. “Think of it like a trial. It’s basically like the same. It just takes more time than you would think.”

So while USADA has show a tendency to reduce suspensions based on supplement use, the NAC has shown to be far more stringent when punishing fighters, evident by their massive fine levied at Conor McGregor for his UFC 202 press conference bottle-throwing incident and their five-year suspension of Nick Diaz for his third marijuana-related offense. But both of those harsh sanctions came from the mind of former commissioner Pat Lundvall, whose stint with the NAC interestingly came to its end yesterday.

With USADA bringing a close to the case, Jacobs hopes the commission will take their findings into account:

“We think that before Nevada hears the case, it would be useful for them to see how these arbitrators analyzed the same facts and [came] to the decision that they’re gonna come to.”

They may or may not, and if history has shown us anything, the NAC tends to do what they want when they want in their hearings, and they rarely waver. Jacobs revealed that he and his team could not reach a viable settlement with USADA on the issue, something that could prove dealing with the NAC even more difficult:

“If we had come to a settlement option that both sides were happy with, we wouldn’t have gone to arbitration.”

The arguments have been presented and the result of Jones’ arbitration is now a waiting game, with even more drama to unfold at the NAC hearing that follows. The dominant but troubled former champion may get a shortened sanction that allows him to fight again sometime early next year, but regardless of this result, it’s going to be on “Bones” to prove he can make it through a fight camp and show up to the Octagon without issues.

It’s been quite some time since we’ve seen arguably the best fighter in MMA history do just that.

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Jon Jones Says “He Would Much Rather” Fight Rumble Than D.C. For UFC Title

Jon Jones is expecting to standing across from Daniel Cormier when he makes his expected Octagon return, even if he prefers someone else entirely.

“Bones” Jones has been pretty active on social media lately, including getting in a big “Twitter War” …

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Jon Jones is expecting to standing across from Daniel Cormier when he makes his expected Octagon return, even if he prefers someone else entirely.

“Bones” Jones has been pretty active on social media lately, including getting in a big “Twitter War” with UFC turned Bellator MMA Heavyweight fighter Matt Mitrione, and when the former champ was asked who he feels will emerge as the reigning champ when Daniel Cormier and Anthony “Rumble” Johnson meet for the 205-pound title.

“If I had to bet I would go with DC,” wrote Jones when asked for his prediction for the D.C.-Rumble 2 fight, which goes down at UFC 206. “His overall game is more complete.”

Cormier chimed in to comment on his biggest rival picking him to win, noting “Bones” was actually a “smart man,” before actually thanking him.

“Smart man JOHNNY boy,” wrote the reigning UFC 205-pound champ. “Thank you.”

While Jones is picking Cormier to remain the champion until his own return, expected sometime in 2017, he also pointed out the fact that he would prefer to fight “Rumble” Johnson in his first fight back to regain his title and clear out the 205-pound division all in one shot.

“I would much rather fight Rumble for the title,” Jones commented. “That way I could clear the division and get my belt back at once.”

The UFC Needs To Swallow Their Pride & Book GSP

Throughout the three-week lull proceeding one of the busiest periods in MMA history surrounding UFC 205, the contract standoff between the UFC and former welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre has perhaps been the most discussed topic. St-Pierre revealed he considered himself a free agent after the UFC failed to give him a realistic fight in a timeframe

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Throughout the three-week lull proceeding one of the busiest periods in MMA history surrounding UFC 205, the contract standoff between the UFC and former welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre has perhaps been the most discussed topic.

St-Pierre revealed he considered himself a free agent after the UFC failed to give him a realistic fight in a timeframe set forth by his lawyer. While the UFC predictably asserted St-Pierre was under contract and that they would hold him to his obligations, it’s simply a sad state of affairs that the situation has been allowed to reach this level.

Tempers were apparently calmed during a recent meeting between new UFC headman Ari Emanuel and St-Pierre, and “Rush” also released a video declaring that his relationship with Dana White had “never been better.” But that still wasn’t enough to get him in the main event slot of UFC 206, a card from Toronto in his native Canada that fans are threatening to boycott if he was not signed.

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It’s looking like they’ll have to boycott, as St-Pierre said the fight, which was rumored to be against Michael Bisping, just isn’t happening as of now. With its Daniel Cormier vs. Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson rematch in the main event and a lackluster undercard, UFC 206 is set to struggle in the UFC’s return to Toronto as it’s sandwiched in between UFC 205 and UFC 207, where Ronda Rousey will return, but this could have easily been avoided.

There are whispers that St-Pierre’s management company CAA and their status as UFC owners WME-IMG’s direct competition in in the talent industry is directly interfering with any deal St-Pierre may sign, and there are other rumors GSP wants $10 million for his return fight that the new ownership isn’t willing to pay. Regardless of the reasoning, however, this is a situation that could have been avoided to make UFC 206 a truly special event – and a massive PPV success.

Instead, it’s just another bad look for the UFC’s new owners, who have stayed stalwart in their plan to cut overhead by releasing employees and playing hardball with St-Pierre in a time where fighter pay and treatment is one of the most hotly debated topics in the sport. The idea that the UFC would take a great financial risk and be forced to spend a large amount of money to re-introduce St-Pierre to a new fanbase is ludicrous, as is WME-IMG’s withdrawal of an offer St-Pierre had received from previous owner Lorenzo Fertitta.

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True, St-Pierre may have been losing fans towards the end of his dominant run when he chose to fight safe and coast to dominant decision wins rather than finish his overmatched opponents, but he’s still one of the most popular fighters the Octagon has ever hosted. He may not bring in the million-plus buys that Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey do, but he can bring in more buys than nearly every other MMA star can.

He’s also the key to a currently struggling Canadian market in MMA, where he ruled for many years as the sport boom North of the Border. His presence would have instantly reinserted a ton of interest and attention into the fight-crazed Canadian MMA market, which has undoubtedly fallen into a funk since he left. Now, however, in an effort to save a few millions off the bottom line, the UFC is content to let UFC 206 fall by the wayside as a wholly forgettable event in a sea of high-profile cards.

It’s purely a business decision, but this decision is not best for business. Maybe St-Pierre is playing hardball; it cannot be denied he’s simply the most high-profile name to speak up for fighters being treated fairly. That’s something that needed to happen and was an eventuality rather than something the UFC could have held off forever. They did a good enough job doing that for several years as it stands.

He’ll most likely eventually reach middle ground with WME-IMG, yet UFC 206 could have been so, so much bigger. For a company that’s clearly about the bottom line, the decision to not back down to St-Pierre’s request is a puzzling one, and one that’s going to cost them millions of dollars in the short run.

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