Jon Jones Details Past Issues With UFC Officials
Jon Jones has had issues with those officiating his fights in the past.
Jones opened up about the issues during the UFC 247 media conference call this week. “Bones” noted that he has felt like a lot of the referees who have worked his fights weren’t on his side in the past, treating him a bit harsh. The light heavyweight champion added, despite all of these obstacles, he has still managed to stay on top of the game. (H/T MMA Junkie)
“I have not (made any requests), but I’ve had some (expletive) situations happen in there,” Jones said. “I felt like I’ve had guys that were very obviously not on my side in that ring, and I’m not going to say their names because I don’t want to give them attention. But even with that happening, I still found a way to not only win those two fights, but finish those fights.”
The two fights Jones mentions are his submission win over Vitor Belfort and TKO defeat of Alexander Gustafsson in their rematch at UFC 232. Those fights were refereed by John McCarthy and Mike Beltran, respectively. Jones noted that he got some “funny-ass energy” from McCarthy before his fight with Belfort.
“John McCarthy, I felt like his energy was way off when I fought Vitor Belfort, and I found a way to finish the fight,” Jones said. “I also felt the energy coming from – I won’t say his name – I feel like the energy in the second Alexander Gustafsson fight, I felt like that referee was sending me some funny-ass energy backstage and in the cage, and I finished the Gustafsson fight, too.
“At the end of the day, I feel like if it’s in God’s plans for me to do what I’ve been doing, it won’t matter which coaches I have, which coaches Dominick has, who’s the referee – none of that stuff matters. God’s will is God’s will, and so it won’t matter who’s the referee.”
Jones is preparing to defend his light heavyweight throne once again, against Dominick Reyes at UFC 247. The show goes down on pay-per-view (PPV) this weekend (Sat. February 8, 2020) from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. Reyes has previously mentioned that he will be speaking to the official of their fight beforehand to warn against Jones’ history of eye pokes. Jones has a history of poking his opponents in the eyes, as he keeps his fingers extended when trying to keep his opponents at distance.
However, Jones believes he’s being unfairly criticized for this, as opening up one’s hands is a natural instinct when fighting with open gloves.
“I fight how I fight,” Jones said. “I grab hands a lot, and over the years I’ve coincidentally landed a few eye pokes. But if you guys think I trained poking people in the eyes, I mean – think about how ridiculous that is. In my last Gustafsson fight, when that referee kept saying, ‘Watch your fingers, Jon.
“Watch your fingers, Jon,’ like, my fingers weren’t even out at the time, and he kept yelling that to me, which was a major distraction, you know? I know Dominick has a problem with the finger stuff, too, and I know he’s talking about talking to the referee before the fight. None of that stuff is going to matter. None of that stuff is going to matter.”
What do you think about Jones’ comments about his past issues with officials?
