UFC Champion Jon Jones Reacts To Astonishing USADA Split: "Man, I Survived"
UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones has something to say on the shocking USADA split.
On October 11, USADA announced that it would no longer be the official anti-doping agency of the UFC effective January 2024. USADA CEO Travis Tygart issued a statement announcing the parting of ways. Tygart even admitted that he didn't know if the UFC would honor a six-month period of testing for Conor McGregor now that he has re-entered the pool, given the fractured relationship.
Jon Jones inside the Octagon for UFC 285.
(Patrick T. Fallon/AFP)
READ MORE: USADA ANNOUNCES SPLIT FROM UFC, POINTS FINGER AT CONOR MCGREGOR & JOE ROGAN
One elite UFC champion who was at the center of controversy during the USADA era was Jon Jones. First, there was the debacle leading up to UFC 200. Jones was set to meet Daniel Cormier in a rematch at the historic event, but he ended up getting flagged for a doping violation and suspended. Jones insisted that the failed test was due to a tainted supplement, which was an issue many fighters ran into with USADA.
Then, there was the UFC 214 controversy. After finishing Cormier in their rescheduled rematch via head kick and some follow-up punches, the result was overturned after "Bones" tested positive for Turinabol. Jones was also stripped of the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship. "Bones" has long insisted that he must've ingested something tainted and only had a picogram of Turinabol in his system.
Taking to his X account, Jon Jones issued the following statement on USADA's exit from the UFC.
"Man, I survived USADA," Jones wrote. "First, they said I was guilty of having picograms, then they considered me innocent, next picograms became legal. Guess what I’m still here, still unbeaten. That BS no contest over DC needs to be taken off my record. I’ve never cheated this sport and I will stand by that until the day I die."
READ MORE: DILLON DANIS SENDS BLUNT MESSAGE AHEAD OF LOGAN PAUL FIGHT
Stick with MMA Knockout for more daily coverage of the UFC and MMA.