Jon Jones Stripped Of UFC Title

The UFC has acted, and acted decisively, in the wake of Jon Jones' felony arrest and pending charges stemming from a multi-vehicle accident the fighter allegedly caused this past Sunday: he has been stripped of his UFC title, and is suspended from the promotion indefinitely. The troubled champion is, in fact, no longer a champion at all. It's a shocking move, and a more serious punishment than most really expected, despite the severity of the case, which saw Jones run a red light, crash into the car of a pregnant woman (breaking her arm), then flee the scene on foot, leaving drugs and paperwork linking the rental car to him behind. Jones, however, has had multiple scandals outside of the octagon despite being flawless inside it since becoming champion (the promotion's youngest ever) in March 2011. Since that time, the fighter, now twenty-seven years old, has defended the belt eight times against some of the stiffest competition the UFC has to offer, yet walked away virtually unscathed nearly every time, only ever coming close to defeat in his bout at UFC 165 in Toronto against Alexander Gustafsson. However, during that impressive run, Jones' incidents outside the fighting world began to pile up: he wrecked his Bentley in New York and was charged with a DUI. He continually embarrassed himself and the UFC on social media, making comments offensive to fans, and allegedly posting homophobic remarks. Last year video made the rounds of Jones exposing himself to a woman believed to be other than his current partner, and following his victory over Daniel Cormier at UFC 182 earlier this year, it was revealed he had tested positive for cocaine use, although he was not suspended for the incident as cocaine is not covered by the Nevada Athletic Commission. Jones also saw himself stripped of his Nike sponsorship following a brawl with Cormier at a press event, though Reebok quickly filled the void. This latest incident, however, appears to be more than the UFC can take. Dana White announced the move late yesterday, and with the light heavyweight title vacant, former challenger Daniel Cormier will step in to take on the man who was scheduled to face Jones at UFC 187, Anthony Johnson. While a solid fight in itself, there's no question this is disappointing for fans, as Johnson was seen as the last real threat to Jones' title reign. Instead, Jones' time at the top has come to an end not from being outworked or caught inside the cage, but from being unbelievably immature outside of it. That's an incredible shame. If Jones had the maturity to match his talent, he may have gone on to defeat records set by the likes of Anderson Silva and Georges St. Pierre, two of the longest serving UFC champions in history. Instead, though he'll likely return, and win again, there'll be asterisks all over his career, and his title defense streak as UFC champion is over until he can clean up his act, return, and challenge for it once more. Return he will. Make no mistake, Jones will fight again, unless something completely unforeseen happens. On Twitter, Jones broke his long silence since the incident, apologizing for letting "everyone down" and stating that he has "a lot of soul searching to do." In the end this may be the best thing for Jones - a bit of tough love from the UFC to scare him straight, and the hope that he will return and once again challenge for/regain the title that was once his.