The California State Athletic Commission will have a hearing in Anaheim on Tuesday, February 27th to address an appeal from Jon Jones’ doping violation and license suspension from UFC 214. The agenda posted by the CSAC website confirmed the hearing.
Jones was suspended after winning the UFC Light Heavyweight title in Anaheim this past July. An in-competition drug test revealed a positive test for the banned substance Turinabol.
In addition, Jones will have another USADA arbitration hearing to determine the failed drug test.
Jones’ manager, Malki Kawa indicated that a resolution should occur by the end of March. He also told MMA Fighting’s Luke Thomas that there is a “95-percent chance Jones will fight before the conclusion of 2018.”
Perhaps being positive, Jones has posted training videos on his social media account. So, maybe there’s some good news for the former champion.
Payout Perspective:
This case has been lingering for a while. We note that the next CSAC meeting after February is in May so if there is no resolution in a couple weeks, barring a special meeting. I am not sure how Kawa believes Jones can be back before the end of 2018. As a second-time offender, the UFC Anti-Doping Policy can hand down a 4-year ban to Jones. His team denies he knowingly took the substance but even if that’s a mitigating factor, the team seems confident Jones will just receive a 1-year suspension. Yet, he’d have to navigate both the CSAC and USADA hearings. Jones seemed confident last time he was suspended, we will see if he has a better case this time around.
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