Jon Jones Passed Blood Test Hours After UFC 214
Those predicting Jon Jones’ demise in MMA may have to wait a little.
According to Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting, the embattled UFC light heavyweight champion, who tested positive for anabolic steroid Turinabol the day before his UFC 214 knockout win over Daniel Cormier, reportedly passed a blood test from USADA in the hours after the event from Anaheim, California.
That means Jones tested negative one day after he failed the steroid on July 28, the day of weigh-ins for his bout versus Cormier. However, it has to be noted blood screenings do not test for Turinabol, begging the question as to exactly what USADA would be looking for if it was not anabolic steroids.
Jones also passed out-of-competition drug screens on July 6 and July 7, with negative results in a blood and urine screen on July 6 and the same for a urine screen on July 7. He reportedly passed seven drug tests leading up to his comeback as well.
Jones is awaiting full due process for his latest drug-related mishap, which occurred only weeks after a previous one-year suspension for testing positive for Clomiphene and Letrozol three days before his scheduled UFC 200 rematch with Cormier. He blamed a male sexual enhancement pill for the failed test but was suspended nonetheless.
Of course, it was only the most recent head-scratching instance of outside-the-cage trouble for Jones, whose laundry list of drug-related troubles have taken on a life of their own and need not be listed here in full yet again. Still, Jones’ team has encouraged his fans to let the full process play out, claiming that a tainted supplement was again the cause of Jones’ positive test.
It’s tough to give him any credit at the current moment based on his extreme propensity for screwing up unnecessarily while simultaneously being the most talented fighter the UFC has ever seen, but if we’ve learned anything about Jones’ seemingly endless mess-ups in the past, he can rebound from them like few mortals could.
The whole scene is strange, and the state athletic director where UFC 214 took place even admitted as much. Perhaps there’s something to Jones’ manager’s insistence.
We’ll keep you posted as always.
