Former UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones was retroactively suspended for only 15-months by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). The 15-month suspension was inexplicably short given that Jones could have been suspended for up to 4 years. This led to speculation that something untoward was going on.
A likely explanation appears to be hidden in the agreement Jones made with USADA and UFC before arbitration. Jones provided USADA with “substantial assistance” in helping rid the UFC of steroids. The deal was not unlike the plea agreements negotiated between defendants and prosecutors in criminal cases. To reward Jones for his help, USADA knocked 30 months off of its 48-month suspension. The arbitrators knocked another 3 months off the suspension. This resulted in the short 15-month suspension.
The obvious conclusion was that Jones snitched on other MMA athletes, trainers, coaches and/or personnel who were involved with anabolic steroids or other prohibited drugs. Jones was widely labeled as a “snitch” on social media.
Daniel Cormier, the current UFC light-heavyweight and heavyweight champion and frequent critic of Jones, seized upon the information suggesting that Jones was a snitch.
“You are actually a SNITCH! You think you’re the only one that’s been offered this deal?” Cormier wrote in a message posted on his Instagram account. “No, you’re just the only scumbag low enough to take it! Which one of your teammates did you tell on to get this joke of a punishment from USADA! I thought there was nothing lower than a cheater but it’s not surprising that you show me a whole new level. You’re a cheater and a SNITCH!”
Malki Kawa, the manager for Jones and CEO of First Round Management, appeared on The MMA Show with Ariel Helwani to set the record straight. Kawa insisted that Jones did not snitch on anyone; Jones only gave USADA information about his own doping history.
“I can just tell you without a shadow of a doubt that Jon did not tell on any teammate,” Kawa, of First Round Management, said on “Ariel Helwani’s MMA Show.” “Jon did not tell on anyone in MMA. Jon did not do anything that these people are saying he did. So all that, ‘He’s a snitch’ and all that stuff, we can put it to bed. He did not do that.
“There’s other things that took place in here. There’s other things that Jon did with himself. There’s things that USADA – and the arbitrator and everyone involved – got from Jon about Jon that they had never had before.”
Unfortunately for Jones and Kawa, USADA did not back up Kawa’s claim or do anything to dispel the notion that Jones is a snitch. If anything, USADA confirmed that it owns Jones and he is compelled to tell it everything he knows about steroid use in the UFC.
“Importantly, if the athlete or support personnel fails to continue to cooperate and provide credible substantial assistance, USADA will reinstate the original sanction,” Eurich said. “These rules set out in 10.6.1.1 are crystal clear, and if they are not met, an individual would not be considered for a reduction based on substantial assistance.”
Is Jones a snitch? Do you believe USADA? Or do you believe Kawa?
USADA responds to Jon Jones manager claim that 'snitching' not part of suspension reduction https://t.co/FpcpqyMmUp pic.twitter.com/Wn8rz7Nyrh
— MMAjunkie (@MMAjunkie) September 25, 2018