Billy Joel was a better musician when he was a junkie. However, the demands of art and the demands of mixed martial arts are most different.
By his own description, Jon Jones led a dissolute, addicted lifestyle prior to getting arrested for getting into a car accident and breaking the arm of a pregnant woman, and then running away, leaving behind cash and marijuana. Jones simultaneously was in the best fight run in UFC history.
Jon Jones tested positive for cocaine a month before defeating the previously undefeated former captain of the US Olympic wrestling team, Daniel Cormier.
In his entire career, Jones only looked beatable three times. The first was when a testosterone-fueled VitorBelfort put him in an armbar. The second was vs. Alexander Gustafsson, before Jones rallied in the final round to take a unanimous decision.
The only time Jones lost, was from top mount, when a controversial referee asked a deaf fighter how he was, after Jones landed a 12-6 elbow, a vestigial prohibition in MMA.
Jones eventually got sober.
A Jon Jones with his head screwed on right is a scary, scary dude,” said UFC president Dana White toKevin Iole for Yahoo Sports.
But Jones’ first fight back, he looked plodding, vs. Ovince Saint Preux, who is now 3-3 of his last six at age 33. That was the third time Jones looked beatable, although not by OSP. But that Jon Jones at UFC 197 looked beatable by Daniel Cormier.
Jones attributed the underwhelming fight to 18 months of fence rust, the late substitution of OSP for Cormier, and what he described as defensive fighting by Saint Preux.
Cormier believes that Jones got clean and sober, hopefully, but now is paying a price, that his lifestyle left him middle aged at 28.
“The Jon that showed up against Ovince Saint Preux is the guy who’s going to be in the Octagon on July 9,” said Cormier. “That is who he is today. Nothing’s free, man. All the other . “stuff, all the partying, all the other stuff, you have to pay for that. … Now we’re getting to the middle where it’s starting to die out. We’ll see the same guy. That’s who he is today. He’s not the guy before.”
This week the UFC will embark on an insane 72 hour run with 33 fights, including five title fights, with eleven current or former champions. There has never been anything like it.
And it ends with UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel vs. interim light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. That final may well answer the looming question – is Jon Jones the fighter he once was? Or is he worse? Or could he be even greater still?
