Considered by many as the best fighter in the world, Jones tested positive for the steroid Turinabol in an in-competition drug test in relation to UFC 214 bout against Daniel Cormier. Jones continuously denied the rumors that he knowingly took any type of steroid and a court date was set with the CSAC to decide the former light heavyweight champion’s future inside the octagon.
The time has come and so has the ruling.
The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) revoked the MMA license of Jones and fined him $205,000 at a hearing Tuesday at the DoubleTree Suites by Hilton.
CSAC executive officer Andy Foster recommended that CSAC does not reinstate Jones until the conclusion of his USADA suspension, which has not yet been set. Jones’ CSAC license expires this coming August.
Jones’ attorney Howard Jacobs did not argue with the drug-test findings, but claimed that Jones did not knowingly take the banned substance.
Jones has passionately denied taking the steroid on purpose. Jones’ defense centered around the fact that he passed drug tests in early July and again Oct. 11 in between the July 28 failure, which does not point to intentional use, per expert witness Paul Scott, an anti-doping researcher.
None of Jones’ supplements tested came back positive for Turinabol. Jacobs said 15 supplements were tested, plus massage creams, and none were contaminated with the steroid. “This situation is like really, really crappy,” Jones said. “I don’t understand how any of this happened and how it got in my system. Imagine being me. I have no clue how this happened. I’m just trying to figure it out just like everybody else.”