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On This Day in MMA History: Jon Jones Maybe Not So Damn Perfect, After All

“On This Day in MMA History” pays tribute to some of the more bizarre and infamous news stories of MMA’s past. The following article was originally published on May 19th, 2012, one year ago today. Note: We’ve placed a few more notable anniversaries at the end of this post.

BREAKING: Jon Jones Arrested for DUI in Binghamton, NY

This doesn’t look good, folks. Initially reported by TMZ.com and confirmed by Josh Gross, UFC Light-Heavyweight champion Jon Jones has been arrested in Binghamton, New York on DUI charges after totaling his Bentley. From TMZ:

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ … Jones was involved in an accident at around 5:00 AM in Binghamton, NY. We’re told the car — which Jones crashed into a pole — was totaled and cops arrested Jones on the scene for DUI.

According to our sources, Jones was taken into custody by Broome County Sheriff and bailed out a few hours later … by his mom. Jones is from nearby Ithaca.

Fortunately for Jones, it appears that he only suffered minor injuries, and it does not appear that anyone else was injured from this accident. It is unclear whether or not there were any passengers in the car at the time of the accident.

As of this writing, Dana White’s only response to the incident has been a text to TMZ, saying “Wow, i guess its not my week is it?”. Given the week he’s had, that may be putting it mildly. Neither Jones nor his teammates will be commenting on the arrest at this time.

BREAKING: Jon Jones Arrested for DUI in Binghamton, NY

According to our sources, Jones was taken into custody by Broome County Sheriff and bailed out a few hours later … by his mom. Jones is from nearby Ithaca.

In and of itself, the incident isn’t too surprising: Jon Jones is a young, talented and seemingly invincible athlete. Like many other athletes in his position, Jones decided to get behind the wheel after clearly drinking too much. Or for that matter, like many of those reading this article, myself included, at one point or another. I’m not saying that drunk driving isn’t a reckless, stupid thing to do, but I also wouldn’t be surprised to see the media be harsher on Jon Jones than they would on, say, Braylon Edwards.

It will be interesting to see how this story develops. Jon Jones is the face of the UFC — and in many ways, mixed martial arts. How will the mainstream media cover this incident? How will Jones be disciplined for this? Will any of his sponsors bail on him? And how will this story be treated in the state of New York, which recently made viewing child porn legal while deeming that MMA should remain illegal? We’ll keep you up to date as more details become available.

@SethFalvo

Update: A statement from First Round Management has been forwarded to Cagepotato.com:

Note: There will be no interviews granted at this time from Jon Jones, or any of his representatives

“I can confirm that Jon Jones was arrested early this morning on suspicion of DUI. While the facts of this situation are still being gathered and situated, First Round Management fully supports Jon and we are asking for fans and media to respect the privacy of Jon and his family during this time.”

–Malki Kawa, Jon “Bones” Jones’ Manager

Other notable CagePotato posts published on May 19th…

– Ricco Rodriguez Assault Arrest Began With a Cab Fare Dispute, Ended With a Police Officer Being Shoved Into a Wall (5/19/11)
– WTF of the Day: Headcase Dan Quinn Being Investigated for Death Threats Toward Dana White (5/19/12)

And finally, happy birthday to UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre, who turns 32 today. Wait a minute…that’s how old I am. And I haven’t done shit with my life. Oh man. That’s a bummer.

Former UFC Scrapper Paul Kelly Is Now a Convicted Heroin Trafficker

(Paul Kelly, leaving his audition for the upcoming Don’ You Go Rounin’ Roun to Re Ro sequel. / Photo via Liverpool Echo)

Paul “Tellys” Kelly, the thickly accented Scouser who compiled a 5-4 record while competing in the UFC as a welterweight and lightweight from 2008-2011, was just convicted of drug-trafficking in his native England, and is currently awaiting sentencing next month. According to the charges filed against him, Kelly — who has maintained his innocence throughout his trial — led a significant heroin dealing operation, in which he and his friend Christopher St John McGirr used couriers to import and distribute heroin. The Liverpool Echo (which Tellys doesn’t seem to hold a very high opinion of) adds more details:

West Derby hard man Paul Kelly had denied being a major heroin dealer after an acquaintance of his was picked up with 1.5kg of import purity drugs in the footwell of his car. But after a four day trial jurors returned unanimous guilty verdicts and he was remanded in custody to await sentence…

During his trial he claimed he earned £100,000 a year and did not need to deal drugs for money. But prosecutor David McLachlan said the fighting money had dried up after he left UFC and ended up losing a “journeyman” bout in India.

(Paul Kelly, leaving his audition for the upcoming Don’ You Go Rounin’ Roun to Re Ro sequel. / Photo via Liverpool Echo)

The investigation centred around Kelly and his best friend Christopher St John McGirr, 28, and their movements at the time of police raids in December 2011 and May 2012.

The court heard the pair were known as Batman and Robin by one of their customers.

They were accused of using couriers to move their drugs because they did not want to get their hands dirty.

One of those couriers, school friend Paul Rogers, 28, was also found guilty during the trial.

McGirr, of Tollerton Road, West Derby, admitted conspiracy to supply class A drugs last year.

When the verdicts were announced Kelly raged from the dock, shouting: “I’ve got two kids!”, while a man believed to be his dad was thrown out by police after an outburst.

Judge Mark Brown told jurors they had made the right decision on the “clearest evidence”.

Kelly, who was given his nickname due to a severe case of invisible lat syndrome, made his Octagon debut at UFC 80 in January 2008, scoring a decision win over Paul Taylor in a bout that won Fight of the Night honors. Kelly went on to earn impressive victories over fighters including Matt Veach and TJ O’Brien, and had the pleasure of getting finished by Marcus Davis, Dennis Siver, and Donald Cerrone during his UFC stint. Following the loss to Cerrone in February 2011, Kelly was released from the UFC, and went 2-1 in international promotions since then, including a TKO victory over Henrique Santana at an Ultimate Warrior Challenge event in Essex this past March.

Anyway, good effort, Paul, but you’re going to have to at least kidnap a couple people if you ever hope to catch Lee Murray on the current leaderboard.

Photos: Nick Diaz Detained by Police Last Night, Probably for Some Bullshit That Wasn’t Even His Fault

One night after being dominated by Georges St. Pierre at UFC 158, Nick Diaz and some of his homies were apparently stopped and detained by police. Diaz tweeted the above photo afterwards — with the caption “Fuck they got us 🙁 ” — but later deleted the post. However, two more photos from the incident remain on his Instagram account, which we’ve placed below…

(Caption: “Yes i am on the sidewalk :/ “)

One night after being dominated by Georges St. Pierre at UFC 158, Nick Diaz and some of his homies were apparently stopped and detained by police. Diaz tweeted the above photo afterwards — with the caption “Fuck they got us ” — but later deleted the post. However, two more photos from the incident remain on his Instagram account, which we’ve placed below…

(Caption: “Yes i am on the sidewalk :/ “)

(Caption: “We lost Alix and Vic”)

I’m guessing Alix is his tax attorney? Unfortunately, we don’t have any details about what led to Diaz being sat down on a sidewalk by some cops, or exactly where this happened, but I think we can assume it had something to do with marijuana smoke comically pouring from the windows of Vic’s 1982 El Dorado as he slowly completed a left turn at a red light with his hazard lights on. We’ll update you when we know more.

And Now He’s Fired: Paul Daley Released From Bellator Roster Following Bar Fight Assault Charge [UPDATED]

(And to think, if only Big Dan was at Paul’s side, this whole situation might have been avoided.)

Good morning, Potato Nation. How was your Christmas? I see that at least a few of you spent it here, arguing about racism, or incomprehensibly ranting about women’s rights, and we thank you for the repeated page views. But if you think you were the only ones whose stockings were stuffed with a bit of vitriol this holiday season, think again, because UFC castaway and all around good guy Paul “Semtex” Daley apparently spent his beating the Christmas spirit out of some local bar patrons.

Sound familiar? According to ESPN’s Josh Gross, Daley has not only been arrested on assault charges stemming from a recent bar fight in his native London, but has been barred from entering the United States until the situation is resolved. This of course means that he will not be participating in Bellator’s upcoming welterweight tournament, although his original opponent, War Machine, had already suffered a leg injury that forced him to postpone their scheduled fight 4 to 6 months. We would say that this is a rather unfortunate turn of events for Bellator, but shit happens when you stack your roster with ex-cons and guys who were thrown out of the UFC for being hotheaded sore losers.

Daley — who could face up to two years in prison if convicted — has yet to make an official statement on the issue, but simply posted the following on the UG:

Rumours. However it seems my next fight will not be for Bellator.

And indeed, Daley has already been booked in the headlining matchup of Cage Contender 16 in Dublin, Ireland on February 23rd. An opponent has yet to be named.

[UPDATE]

(And to think, if only Big Dan was at Paul’s side, this whole situation might have been avoided.)

Daley — who could face up to two years in prison if convicted — has yet to make an official statement on the issue, but simply posted the following on the UG:

Rumours. However it seems my next fight will not be for Bellator.

And indeed, Daley has already been booked in the headlining matchup of Cage Contender 16 in Dublin, Ireland on February 23rd. An opponent has yet to be named.

[UPDATE]

From Daley’s Facebook:

It’s seems as though a mass press release has gone out to the MMA media, stating I was involved in a bar brawl, arrested, and cannot obtain a P-1 visa to compete in the USA.

…I am currently awaiting a decision on my visa, which is not expected until late April. Which means i am unable to compete in the season 8 Bellator tournament, as it starts in January.

I will be fighting in Europe in the coming months, so I am able to stay active while awaiting a decision on my visa status.

I was not involved in a bar brawl. This is 100% a false statement.

While we’re not prepared (or informed) enough to call Daley a liar, something definitely smells fishy here. For starters, Daley has competed several times in the US before without Visa issues, so the fact that he’s suddenly run into said issues cannot mean anything positive. And as one person stated on Daley’s Facebook, where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire. But again, if we’re using Chad Mendes as a measuring stick, then the charges against Daley may very well have been exaggerated by the media sources who originally reported it. On the other hand, note that Daley said he was never involved in a bar brawl, NOT that he wasn’t facing assault charges.

Daley’s manager, Wad Alameddine, also stated that Paul plans on fighting for Bellator following his February fight, but we will keep you informed as details are made available.

–J. Jones

Heart-Ripping MMA Fighter Jarrod Wyatt Sentenced to 50 Years to Life in Prison

(“Blame it on the muh, muh-muh-muh, muh-mushroom tea…” / Wyatt, shown directly after his arrest and in an undated photo from the Del Norte County Sheriffs Office.)

In March 2010, a Northern California-based mixed martial artist named Jarrod Wyatt was arrested and charged with first-degree murder after drilling a hole into the chest of his friend and sparring partner Taylor Powell, removing his heart, tongue, and most of his face, then cooking the heart in a wood stove. “Satan was in that dude,” Wyatt allegedly told the Del Norte County Police sergeant who responded to the scene. It’s worth mentioning that the incident occurred after Wyatt, Powell, and two other acquaintances got together to drink some psychedelic mushroom tea, and Wyatt became convinced that the world was about to end.

The case has suffered a series of delays resulting from Del Norte District Attorney Jon Alexander tossing out the original charges of murder, aggravated mayhem, and torture (which carried a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison), in order to re-file the case to include “special circumstance allegations of mayhem, extreme cruelty and depravity,” which would have brought a potential sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. In May, Wyatt was ruled competent to stand trial, and a start date was originally sent for today, September 10th. But on Thursday, September 6th, Wyatt accepted a plea deal in which he pleaded guilty to first degree murder involving mayhem, with a special enhancement for using a weapon, and was sentenced to two consecutive sentences of 25 years to life.

The deal followed an earlier proposed deal from Wyatt’s attorney James Fallman, in which Wyatt would plead guilty to second-degree murder, ultimately serving 41 years to life in prison. But D.A. Jon Alexander wasn’t having that mess. As he told the Times-Standard:

(“Blame it on the muh, muh-muh-muh, muh-mushroom tea…” / Wyatt, shown directly after his arrest and in an undated photo from the Del Norte County Sheriffs Office.)

In March 2010, a Northern California-based mixed martial artist named Jarrod Wyatt was arrested and charged with first-degree murder after drilling a hole into the chest of his friend and sparring partner Taylor Powell, removing his heart, tongue, and most of his face, then cooking the heart in a wood stove. ”Satan was in that dude,” Wyatt allegedly told the Del Norte County Police sergeant who responded to the scene. It’s worth mentioning that the incident occurred after Wyatt, Powell, and two other acquaintances got together to drink some psychedelic mushroom tea, and Wyatt became convinced that the world was about to end.

“I said we would accept first degree murder and nothing less than 50 years to life,” Alexander said…

He said he spoke with Powell’s family tonight, who also agreed to the plea deal.

“The earliest he’ll be able to see a parole board is 2062,” Alexander said.

He said it was important to him that Wyatt admitted to killing Powell, and that it was a premeditated murder that wasn’t the result of drinking psychedelic mushroom tea.

“I wanted him to admit this wasn’t the product of drug delusion,” Alexander said…

Alexander said Thursday that he thinks Wyatt’s plea deal sentence is appropriate.

“My office and my team worked very hard, and we’re satisfied,” Alexander said. “We saved Taylor’s family the agony from reliving the incident at the trial.”

Fallman maintains that his client didn’t kill Powell in a premeditated manner — “He was too damn high on drugs to premeditate it,” Fallman said — but after Wyatt decided at the last minute that he didn’t want to testify at the trial, and didn’t want his family members to testify either, Fallman concluded that a plea deal would be their only chance to secure Wyatt the possibility of parole:

[Fallman] said Wyatt would never see a parole board if found guilty of the special circumstances.

“We felt that if the jury got a hold of that and photos, they would slam him with every possible thing,” Fallman said.

If found guilty of all charges, Fallman said Wyatt could have faced at least three life sentences.

“He would’ve had to reincarnate a few times to serve the time,” Fallman said…He said Wyatt is very remorseful and apologized to Powell’s family when he pleaded guilty Thursday.

Arrest Roundup: Mayhem Hit With Vandalism Charges, McCall Mistaken for Drug Dealer

(I’ll just sit here and be quiet, just in case they do… suspect me. They’re probably watching me. Well, let them. Let them see what kind of a person I am. I’m not even going to swat that fly. I hope they are watching… they’ll see. They’ll see and they’ll know, and they’ll say, “Why, he wouldn’t even harm a fly…”)

After suffering the greatest loss of his storied mixed martial arts career last month — that of his dignity — when he was found nude inside a Mission Viejo church he had destroyed and doused with a fire extinguisher, it appears that charges are finally being pressed against former UFC/Strikeforce fighter and MTV psuedo-reality show host Jason Miller. And they are relatively modest considering both the circumstances of his arrest and the fact that this wasn’t Miller’s first rodeo, if you know what we mean; Miller is being charged with just one count of misdemeanor vandalism for his actions, and is set to appear in court on November 21st.

“Mayhem,” who was released from jail following a brief psychological evaluation, promised to his fans and those concerned that “everything was fine” and that he was “with people that love me, and hope that you will join me. If I ever hurt anyone, I am sorry,” in his first public statement, but hasn’t been heard from since. Fun fact: Miller was arrested almost one year to the day after his aforementioned arrest for putting his sister in a headlock. Apparently that August heat really does drive some people crazy.

Elsewhere on the MMA blotter…

To say that the circumstances surrounding flyweight contender Ian McCall’s recent arrest were suspicious would be like saying that Ian McCall’s nickname is an accurate reflection of the vibe he gives off. The charges that were originally reported to be facing McCall ranged everywhere from possession of drug paraphernalia to driving on a suspended license and mislead the public into suspecting that McCall had fallen back into old habits.

When it turned out that the charges dated way back to a previous arrest in 2008 which McCall had failed to complete the terms of, “Uncle Creepy” was surprised to say the least, but claimed that the reasoning behind his arrest was much more sinister than we were originally led on, according to a recent interview during The MMA Hour:

They thought I was a drug dealer. Don’t know why. Well, actually, I know why. Someone that doesn’t like me told them I was a drug dealer. An actual drug dealer that doesn’t like me got busted — I’ve seen the paperwork — and said ‘oh, he’s a drug dealer too.’

And they came over to my house and they didn’t find any drugs, they didn’t find any text messages, they didn’t find anything bad. So they’re like ‘okay, you’re not a drug dealer, but your probation officer said to come get you anyways because you have a suspended license.

Oh, I see. The police used the classic method of dropping a fake bombshell to soften the blow for the actual bad news, a technique pioneered by the great Frank Reynolds. As much as I’d like to rake them over the coals for such tomfoolery, I used the same method to tell a former girlfriend of mine that she should get checked for HIV, when in fact I had only given her herpes, so who am I to judge?

And as was the case for me, McCall admits that the whole experience was “embarrassing”:

Them taking me away in front of my daughter and my wife. They tore my house apart, they tore my car apart. I guess they were following me from the gym, and they said, ‘oh, it would be more embarrassing if you got arrested in front of your gym.’ Well I’d much rather be arrested in front of my gym, where my coach is a lawyer, compared to me being arrested at my house, in front of my neighbors and my daughter. I don’t know. Cops are stupid, and they really just wanted to come to the house and search the house. But, again, I’m not a drug dealer and I’m not being charged with selling drugs.

Although McCall managed to get out 13 days early from this 30-day sentence, the trials and tribulations of Sir Floyd Mayweather have taught us that McCall’s stay likely depleted him physically to the point that he will never fight again, so we might as well start breaking out his highlight reels and call it a day…

…what’s that? McCall didn’t act like a trifling little bitch in jail, but simply served the time he was required to? You don’t say:

I couldn’t sleep in there. I got maybe like an hour of sleep a day, for the first ten days. I remember just sitting up and I was like, ‘what the hell am I doing here. I don’t belong here. This isn’t where I’m supposed to be right now. I’m should be at the gym, at least getting punched in the face, if not punching someone in the face. I’m supposed to be doing better things with my life, and creating a life for my family.

There’s nothing set in stone. I wanted to fight in November, but I think because of the UFC 151 debacle, I wont be able to fight until January. But there’s a lot of flyweight fights coming up until then, so, I don’t mean to be mean, but hopefully someone breaks a pinky toe or something so I can step in and hurt somebody.

Here’s hoping, Ian. Let’s just hope that toe break doesn’t look anything like this.

–J. Jones