Jones Maintains He Never Used Steroids Despite Tests

Jon Jones continues to defend his legacy against doping allegations, insisting he never knowingly used performance-enhancing drugs despite multiple failed tests during his UFC career.

The former two-division champion, who many consider among the greatest fighters in MMA history, told ALF Global that substances found in his system came from contaminated supplements. "Never took steroids," Jones said, per Sherdog. "It was a supplement found in my body. It was proven to come from a supplement company that I was using."

Jones Addresses Failed Tests and Fan Criticism

Jones was stripped of the interim heavyweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">light heavyweight title in 2016 after testing positive for clomiphene and letrozole following his win over Ovince St. Preux. A year later, he tested positive for a turinabol metabolite, which led to his stoppage victory over Daniel Cormier being overturned to a no contest. In 2018, the same metabolite appeared in his system after he defeated Alexander Gustafsson, though he avoided punishment as officials ruled it a lingering trace from the earlier violation.

The heavyweight champion argued that the amounts detected were negligible and required expensive scientific equipment to find. He said the substances in question had zero performance-enhancing effects, a claim he says is well documented. Jones also pushed back against critics who question his accomplishments, pointing to what he sees as a contradiction in their logic.

"For some reason, the fans ignore all that, and they're just like, 'Something about steroids, he's guilty,'" he said. "It's funny because fighters are like, 'Jon Jones is a knucklehead, but he's brilliant enough to do steroids and trick the UFC's scientists.' It's like, which one is it? Am I the knucklehead or the mad genius?"

Jones holds a 28-1 record and currently reigns as UFC heavyweight champion, though his anti-doping history remains a central point in debates over his place in MMA history.

Original reporting:

• sherdog.com — Jon Jones defends legacy, says he never used steroids despite failed tests