September 24, (THEWILL) – Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) star Jon “Bones” Jones was arrested early Friday morning in Las Vegas on multiple charges leveled against him by the Las Vegas Metro Police. According to a police spokesperson, Jones was charged with battery, domestic violence and injuring and tampering with a vehicle.
It will be the latest in a string of controversies that have trailed the fighter’s professional career.
At the age of 23, Jones became the youngest champion in UFC history with his title victory over Maurício Rua. It was the first of many UFC records Jones obtained in the light heavyweight division, including the most title defenses, most wins, longest win streak, and most submission victories.
During much of his championship reign, Jones was widely considered to be the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. He was never stopped nor outscored during his career and his only professional loss is a controversial disqualification against Matt Hamill; a result that Hamill and UFC President Dana White dispute.
However, between 2015 and 2017, Jones was involved in several controversies and lost his title three times as a result of disciplinary action. He was first stripped of his title and removed from the official rankings by the UFC after he was arrested on felony hit-and-run charges in 2015.
Subsequent returns to the UFC in 2016 and 2017 saw him emerge victorious in title bouts against Ovince Saint Preux and Daniel Cormier, but were both cut short by Jones testing positive for banned substances and receiving further suspensions, with the latter reversed to a “no contest”.
Upon the official lifting of his 2017 suspension, Jones reclaimed the championship in 2018 by defeating Alexander Gustafsson before voluntarily vacating the title last year amid a pay dispute with White while citing an intention to move up to heavyweight.
The 34-year-old Jones had not fought for UFC since February 2020 and was actually preparing for a foray into the heavyweight division before this arrest and charges.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
