UFC
UFC President Dana White on Jon Jones: "Jon's had a lot of chances. This one was his last chance."
Apr 29, 2015 - 4:00:09 PM UFC President Dana White on Jon Jones: "Jon's had a lot of chances. This one was his last chance."

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

The UFC's decision to actually strip Jon Jones of the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship and suspend him indefinitely on Tuesday came as a bit of a surprise. Despite the latest indiscretion from Jones outside of the cage, the UFC has had a history of not overly punishing their top competitors.

However, to hear UFC President Dana White discuss the matter, it seems they're looking to actually keep him on ice for a considerable amount of time.

"A lot of people know, Jon's had a lot of chances," White said ESPN's SportsNation program today (via MMAFighting.com). "This one was his last chance. He's got handle his business outside of the Octagon and then we'll see where he goes from there."

"Obviously he's one of our biggest stars. He was on his way to becoming one of the greatest ever, and he's got some legal problems he's got to deal with now. So we suspended him, stripped him of the title, and he's got some work to do outside of the sport. Then we'll decide when he comes back."

Penick's Analysis: Here is where things could potentially get interesting in the Jon Jones saga. The UFC suspending him to address his legal issues without distraction is certainly a reasonable enough move, but where is the line drawn here? If the legal process on this case is resolved within a few months, how long can they just keep him out of the cage? If their answer is "as long as we like," that's something Jones could potentially challenge. It's a situation that could see the UFC's authority over their roster of supposed "independent contractors" get scrutinized, as Jones has the clout and the means to fight something like that in court should he be ready to return. This situation is far from over, and everything has to run its course, but White's comments should be a little concerning.

[Dana White art by Travis Beaven (c) MMATorch.com]