8 Biggest Jon Jones Controversies

Jon Jones' history with recreational drugs is a long and interesting one. When the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion was making his meteoric rise up the sport, he appeared highly media-trained in the way that he spoke to reporters and was quick to disavow recreational substances. In an interview before his fight with Matt Hamill in 2009, Jones even went as far as saying he was the kind of guy that would snitch on his fellow students during his schooldays.

I was always the kid who snitched on the kids who had pot. I don’t want to offend the pot smokers out there, but I was kind of just a snitch. I was just down for people doing the right thing.

But it wasn't just Joe Rogan's drug of choice that Jones would demonstrate that he had a penchant for. After defeating arch-rival Daniel Cormier at UFC 182, it was announced that Jones had failed a pre-fight drug test for a metabolite of cocaine, and would be fined $25,000 by the UFC for the infraction. In response to severe scrutiny from both fans and the media, Jones checked himself into rehab.

Then, after a stint likely as record-breaking as his fighting career, Jones left rehab after just one night. He would later use the memories of his drug-fuelled antics as trash talk ammunition prior to his rematch with Cormier in 2017.