J. Jones hasn't fought since July 2017. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram @jonnybones
The most anticipated event of the year has a new home. UFC 232, scheduled for next Saturday (29), would be held in Las Vegas, but has moved to California and will take place in the city of Inglewood. The reason for the last-minute change? A change in drug testing Jon Jones.
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The news was confirmed by Dana White, president of the franchise, in an appearance on ESPN's 'SportsCenter' program in the USA. The director informed that the Nevada Athletic Commission, the entity that would sanction the show in Las Vegas, did not grant the fighter license to Jon Jones. The cause would be a small change in a 'Bones' anti-doping test.
The problem arose earlier this week when the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) reported a change in the drug test submitted by Jones on December 9. He showed the presence of the metabolite “turinabol”, the same one he had already tested positive for in July 2017. At the time, the fighter was suspended for 15 months.
According to Jeff Novitzky, vice president of athlete health and performance at the UFC, USADA stated that the change in the test, because it was so small, cannot be seen as 'positive'. He stated that the result could be a remnant of the substance found in the 2017 test and which still remained in the fighter's body. Novitzky also described the amount of the substance found at “picogram” levels.
“A picogram is one trillionth of a gram. If you put a grain of salt on the table and divide it into 50 million pieces, a picogram is one of those pieces of that gram of salt. So a very small amount,” he said.
California Commission agrees to host the event
Unlike the Nevada Athletic Commission, the California-based entity agreed to host UFC 232. According to a report from the North American website MMA Junkie, Jones underwent an anti-doping test this weekend and the tests were negative. As a result, the California Athletic Commission applied for a fighter's license for the former light heavyweight champion.
UFC 232
UFC 232 is one of the most anticipated events by MMA fans. The main fight of the night will be a light heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones e Alexander Gustafson, in a long-awaited rematch. In the second most anticipated duel, the Brazilian champions Chris Cyborg e Amanda nunes duel for the women's featherweight title. Check out the show's fight program:
MAIN CARD (1pm Brasília time):
Light Heavyweight: Jon Jones x Alexander Gustafson – fight for the belt
Feather weight: Chris Cyborg x Amanda nunes – fight for the belt
Welterweight Weight: Carlos Condit x Michael chiesa
Light Heavyweight: Ilir Latifi x Corey anderson
Feather weight: Chad Mendes x Alex Volkanovski
PRELIMINARY CARD (21:30 p.m., Brasília time):
Heavyweight: Andrei Arlovski x Walt Harris
Feather weight: Zingano cat x Megan anderson
Bantamweight: Douglas D'Silva x Petr yan
Lightweight: BJ Penn x Ryan Hall
Bantamweight: Nathaniel Wood x Andrew Ewell
Average weight: Uriah Hall x Bevon Lewis
Welterweight: Curtis Millender vs. Siyar Bahadurzada
Bantamweight: Montel Jackson x brian kelleher
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