Jon Jones finds himself in another run-in with the law, but UFC president Dana White believes the light heavyweight champion will be just fine.
Jones (25-1-1 MMA, 19-1-1 UFC) is charged with battery after an alleged incident with a waitress at a strip club in Albuquerque, N.M. The alleged victim said Jones grabbed her inappropriately and placed her in a chokehold, among other accusations. Jones is still expected in court next month.
Speaking at the UFC 240 post-event news conference, White said that, after watching video of the incident, Jones should be cleared of any wrongdoing.
“I actually haven’t talked to Jon, but I don’t want to get into that whole thing,” White said. “But I can tell you this: I saw some videos, (and) Jon Jones will be fighting again.
“That’s sad, sad that something like that would happen to him,” White added. “It’s hard to give Jon Jones the benefit of the doubt until you see the videos, so I think Jon Jones is going to be fine.”
Jones is coming off a split-decision win over Thiago Santos at UFC 239. It seemed like everything in Jones’ personal life was going well until the battery charge. That being said, White believes Jones will definitely be fighting again. And as Jones has already expressed interest, headlining UFC 244 on Nov. 2 in New York is a possibility.
One guy who would love to fight Jones is Corey Anderson, who is riding a three-fight winning streak after defeating Ilir Latifi by unanimous decision in his last fight at UFC 232. Anderson has wanted nothing more than a title shot, as he’s previously admitted to turning down fights with Alexander Gustafsson in June, when his wife was due, and Luke Rockhold.
Over the weekend, Anderson had a run-in with Jones at an autograph signing in New Jersey. While it seems like a fight between the two could be brewing, White shut down the possibility of Anderson being next in line.
“Corey Anderson has turned down about 50 fights in the last month,” White said. “No.”
