Jon Jones denies ever using steroids, pushes back against doping reputation

Jon Jones (39, United States), widely regarded as the greatest of all time in UFC, has drawn a large anti-fan base due to personal controversies, a criminal record and repeated doping violations. He is now making a belated effort to rehabilitate his image by pleading his innocence on the doping front.

In a recent interview with Russian-based combat sports media outlet ALF Global, Jones said, "I have never taken steroids. What was detected in my body was a supplement ingredient. It has already been proven that it came from a product made by the supplement company I was using."

Jones remains under contract with the UFC but has been in a semi-retired state with no bouts since 2024. He tested positive for banned substances on multiple occasions during his active career.

Ahead of UFC 200 in 2016, clomiphene and letrozole were detected in a doping test, leading to the cancellation of his scheduled rematch against Daniel Cormier. The following year, after defeating Cormier at UFC 214, Jones tested positive for turinabol, causing the result to be overturned to a no-contest and earning him a 15-month suspension.

Jones also drew controversy when trace amounts of banned substances were detected ahead of UFC 232 and UFC 235. On this, he said in the interview that "these were also from supplements, and the amounts detected in my body were so minuscule that they had absolutely no effect on my performance."

Jones said the cause differed in each case. He said the UFC 200 incident stemmed from a male enhancement product he had purchased at a gas station, while a contaminated supplement was to blame for the UFC 214 result. He added that the trace amounts detected ahead of UFC 232 and UFC 235 were cases that scientists have described as so-called "picogram pulsing."

Picogram pulsing refers to a phenomenon in which minuscule metabolites of a previously used banned substance are intermittently detected in the body. USADA, the anti-doping authority at the time, along with some toxicologists, ruled that there was "no evidence of new use," and both bouts proceeded as scheduled.

Regardless of his explanations, testing positive for doping on multiple occasions is entirely the athlete's responsibility and warrants criticism. Even if there was no intent to inject substances directly, Jones should have exercised sufficient caution when consuming food and prescription medications.

Many fans have been skeptical of the excuses he has offered each time a doping violation surfaced. The mockery has been widespread enough that Korean fans have taken to calling him "Bong Jones" — a nickname playing on Korean slang for steroids.

Jones holds a career MMA record of 28 wins, one loss and one no-contest, and is considered one of the greatest fighters in UFC history. He has claimed titles in two weight classes — light heavyweight and heavyweight.