"I will be back. At the end of the day, I'm a fighter."
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Interim Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones held a special press conference earlier today (Thurs., July 7, 2016) to address the mixed martial arts (MMA) media following a potential anti-doping violation.
Watch the full video replay here.
Now that "Bones" has been officially removed from his UFC 200 main event opposite longtime rival Daniel Cormier, which was originally scheduled for T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, Jones and his crisis team have a new fight on their hands.
The fight to clear his name.
Not going to get into the details of the notice we got, simply because we are going to do what we have to do to dispute this," manager Malki Kawa said. "The 'B' sample will be tested today. I feel like when this is all said and done, we will be alright. He didn't cheat or try to do anything wrong."
Kawa helped another client, top middleweight contender Yoel Romero, negotiate a deal with Untied States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) earlier this year, the same governing body responsible for flagging Jones -- and quite a few others -- since taking power in summer 2015.
While Jones hinted at testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug (PED), he wouldn't get into specifics, insisting that he's yet to change is training and supplement regimen for his UFC 200 fight camp. In addition, his publicist was adamant that her client took -- and passed -- a battery of drug tests as part of his court-ordered probation.
There is no word yet from UFC officials regarding the future of his interim strap, but Jones expects to surrender it in light of recent events, once again leaving Cormier as the undisputed champion. "DC" has yet to beat "Bones" after coming up short at UFC 182.
"I have not talked to Dana White yet, but would like to," Jones said. "I spoke to Lorenzo Fertitta and I told him I'd never cheat and I apologized to him."
Depending on the results of his "B" sample, which could be returned as early as Friday, according to Kawa, the 28-year-old Jones could be looking at a two-year suspension from combat sports. That would be a tough pill to swallow for a fighter widely considered the greatest 205-pounder in history.
Especially after last year's disciplinary suspension.
"If it's a two year ban, I will be back," Jones continued. "At the end of the day, I'm a fighter. And even though I may seem broken up here, I'm not broken. I'm just upset. I'm not going to let this slow me down. I won't let two years out of the game slow me down. I'll find the good in this. I think that God has a way of talking to us."
To see the revised UFC 200 line up click here.