Jones: I have to surrender to critic ignorance

The latest Jon Jones test anomaly, the faintest trace elements of a steroid metabolite, doesn’t prove that he’s a PED user. Instead, it clearly demonstrates that USADA should not be in the sanctioning business. They do a great job finding any trace of anything in athletes, but when it comes to sanctioning, their efforts become problematic.

Why was Tom Lawlor given a two years suspension and Jon Jones a pass?

However, Jones has become the center of the conversation, and there appears to be little he can do to stop it.

“I think my trying to prove any type of innocence is going to be virtually impossible before the fight, because of the controversial image I have,” said Jones to Brett Okamoto for ESPN. “People are kind of set in what they’re going to believe. I can’t win over many minds before the fight.”

“Even the scientists that found it, don’t know much about it. I’m hearing reports this s*** could live in my system for seven years. I’ve learned to say, ‘You know what Jon? You know in your heart you did nothing wrong.’ If I took another polygraph test and answered the question, ‘Have you ever knowingly put this in your system?’ I could confidently say, ‘No, I never knowingly put this in my system.’ And it would be a true statement.

“I just have to surrender to people’s opinions. I gotta surrender to the ignorance our sport is surrounded by. I gotta surrender to the fact most people will never pick up a book and do homework for themselves. I gotta surrender to it all and say, ‘Listen Jon, you’ve had a controversial career. You’re fun for people to pick at. You’re fun for people to talk about. If you are part of anything that’s not positive, it’s going to be huge news.’

“I have to be 100 percent confident in knowing I didn’t do anything wrong.”