Jon
Jones believes his legendary career in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship could have been even greater if
he had better control over his alcohol use.
The former two-division champion reflected on his career during a
recent interview, admitting that his partying lifestyle during his
prime contributed to many of the setbacks he experienced outside of
the Octagon.
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Jon Jones reflects on UFC career setbacks and how alcohol
affected his MMA legacy
Jones, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest MMA fighters
of all time, recently reflected on his antics outside the Octagon,
which he believes caused several major career setbacks.
“I became a little bit of a party boy when I was young,” Jones said
in an interview with Ring Magazine when asked what he would change
about his career. “And sometimes I ask myself, ‘Jon, how much
farther would you have been if you would have never started with
the alcohol?’”
Jones won titles at both light heavyweight and heavyweight. Many
consider him undefeated, with his lone defeat coming against
Matt
Hamill via disqualification back in 2009, a fight he was
dominating before an illegal 12-6 elbow prompted a stoppage.
However, his life outside the cage was often plagued with
controversies, including run-ins with the law and failed drug
tests.
“I feel all my setbacks in life have been directly related to
alcohol,” Jones said. “And I’ve been able to achieve some amazing
things and reach some pretty amazing heights. But I feel like
things could have been even much, much higher if I would have never
gotten into partying.”
Drawing from his experience, Jones shared the following advice for
young fighters:
“So, to all you young athletes out there, you know, just keep
things in check.”