Jon "Bones" Jones, the top pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC, was stripped of his light heavyweight belt ahead of a scheduled title defense vs. Anthony "Rumble" Johnson at UFC 187 after he fled the scene of an accident in which a pregnant woman broke her arm. Jones had also tested positive for cocaine a month before his January title defense against Daniel Cormier.
In 2012, Jones crashed his car into a telephone pole and was convicted of driving under the influence. All these factors contributed to the UFC's painful decision to sideline their best fighter indefinitely, and take his championship away. Jones' manager Malki Kawa agreed Jones needed to be punished, but thought the UFC's decision was too swift and too harsh.
"Jon Jones won that belt inside the Octagon," Kawa said. "Nobody beat him for the belt. That's just one case in itself. But on the other hand, we're jumping to a lot of conclusions. We haven't let things play out. He hasn't had his day in court and I don't think it's OK to just hand punishments down like that. But I do definitely understand where the UFC, sponsors and everyone is coming from. I can totally understand."
Kawa also said stripping Jones of the belt makes it a bit of a farce for the champion since they did not beat the real king of the division. Kawa specifically mentioned Cormier, whose last fight was a clear, decision loss to Jones.
"If you're Daniel Cormier and you win this belt, right, and you go parading around the world and you're this and you're that, do you think anyone on the face of this Earth can actually take you serious?" Kawa said. "It would be such a joke at that point."
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