Chael Sonnen didn’t agree with UFC’s punishment of Jon Jones
Jon Jones has had one of the more up-and-down careers in the history of the mixed martial arts – and that’s saying something for this unpredictable sport.
After being arrested for an alleged hit-and-run in Albuquerque on Sunday, Jones was stripped of his UFC light heavyweight title on Tuesday. To make matters worse for the former champ, it was announced on Wednesday that Jones’ latest sponsor (and UFC apparel partner) Reebok had terminated its contract with the Jackson-Winklejohn product.
And this week’s incident wasn’t the first time that’d happened.
A DUI in 2012 saw newly-inked sponsor Bud Light drop Jones. Next, cell phone provider MetroPCS and Jones agreed to go their separate ways. Apparel giant Nike had signed Jones to a deal at one point; their relationship didn’t last long though. Apparently Jones’ UFC 178 press conference brawl with Daniel Cormier soured the relationship. Jones also saw a deal with Gatorade fall apart during that time.
Never one to need a prompt, former UFC middleweight contender Chael Sonnen offered up his opinion on his former foe. And get this: Sonnen doesn’t think the UFC did enough in dealing with Jones.
“Taking away his belt was one of the options on the table, but I don’t think it was well thought through,” Sonnen said. “What will they do to Jon Jones now? Put him on preliminary cards? It’s weird. You either cut the guy completely or shut up.”
“Cutting the guy completely” is what the UFC and FOX did in 2014 when Sonnen failed two drug tests in the lead-up to his fight with longtime rival Wanderlei Silva.
Sonnen certainly had his fair share of second chances in MMA. Preceding his failed tests before the Wanderlei Silva fight, Sonnen had elevated testosterone after his first fight with Anderson Silva at UFC 117 in 2010. Then, in 2011, Sonnen pleaded guilty to money laundering charges in a 2006 mortgage fraud case in Oregon. Sure, it wasn’t a UFC issue, but one could argue that neither is Jon Jones’ alleged felony – the UFC didn’t look particularly good in either situation, mind you, but neither had to do with fighting.
Then again, this isn’t a contest to see who got more chances during their time with the UFC. Jones certainly had his fair share, and the same goes for Sonnen. The only difference is, technically speaking, Jon Jones is still employed by the UFC.
What do you think? Is Sonnen crying sour grapes, or does he have a viable gripe?
Popular related video on Yahoo Sports:
