UFC Light heavyweight champion, pound-for-pound greatest of all time, and good-guy-gone-bad Jon Bones Jones has been flagged by USADA for a possible anti-doping infringement following an in-competition test carried out just before his UFC 214 title fight with Daniel Cormier.
Jon Jones reportedly tested positive for the anabolic steroid Turinabol (aka TBol, aka mild Dianabol) - (in)famous for being the steroid of choice in the East German doping program.
The UFC are allowing due process to be carried out before making a decision regarding the title, but if worst comes to worst for Jones, he's looking at possibly being stripped of the title and potentially being out of the sport for 4 years for a second doping ban. UFC President Dana White thinks that would pretty much bring the curtain down on Jones' exciting but turbulent career.
Of course, having previously been sanctioned for a doping violation in the well-publicized "gas station sex pill" case and having to fight subsequent accusations of steroid use, the question is how could this happen?? How could Jon be caught using a low-grade steroid from the 60s on the eve of his fight for redemption?
For me, I think there also need to be questions for Jon's coaching team. I find it highly unlikely that Jones was going into the alley behind the gym by himself to score some PED pills without anyone's knowledge. These guys are on a strictly controlled diet and exercise program, they are given their supplements by their coaches... I just don't think Jon is sneaking off on his own to get some roids.
Beyond that, the circumstances of this case also don't make sense. The test was conducted on the night before the fight! Why would Jones have popped a steroid pill the night before the fight??? Not only would it be of absolutely ZERO use as far as enhancing his performance, but he would know that he's going to be tested after the fight as well!
USADA has had a huge effect since coming into the UFC. It just makes no sense for any high profile competitors to still be trying to get one past the drug-testers after seeing some of the casualties taken so far - Anderson Silva, Brock Lesnar, Lyoto Machida, Chad Mendes.
In this crazy world, the only other totally far out and ridiculous thing that my mind can conceive is that Jon had some self-doubt after the weigh-in and popped the pill so that the fight would be a no-contest if he lost. It's a stretch, but he has previously admitted that he used to party and do coke in the week before a fight so that he had an excuse if he lost. Seeing as his coaches said that he had injured his arm 2 days before the fight, maybe Jon wasn't too sure about putting DC away and saw a way to give himself an out.