Jon Jones’ Manager Says Snitching Is Not Part Of USADA Deal

In an interview with Ariel Helwani’s MMA show (via MMA Junkie), Jon Jones’ manager Malki Kawa said that Jon Jones’ deal with USADA for a shorter suspension did not include information about other fighters. Here are highlights:

On the details of the deal: “I can just tell you without a shadow of a doubt that Jon did not tell on any teammate. Jon did not tell on anyone in MMA. Jon did not do anything that these people are saying he did. So all that, ‘He’s a snitch’ and all that stuff, we can put it to bed. He did not do that. There’s other things that took place in here. There’s other things that Jon did with himself. There’s things that USADA – and the arbitrator and everyone involved – got from Jon about Jon that they had never had before.”

On the cooperation requirement: “It’s not like Jon sits in a room somewhere and watches people do steroids, and then he’s like, ‘Hey man, guess what, my teammate over here is doing steroids’. Jon goes and trains, gets his stuff, and he goes home. He doesn’t take a shower there. He doesn’t really hang out there. He comes in, does his thing, and he leaves. So he doesn’t sit there and hang out like that, or would know about anyone that does that. He doesn’t do that. So when people say these things, to me, it’s a funny thing. I’m assuming if Jon’s name comes up in something, and he was to know something, he would have to be cooperative with them. But I don’t know of a deal where it’s like, ‘Hey, we’re going to continue to’ – I don’t know about that. That’s not how it went down. I don’t want to assume anything or have this turn into a disaster all of a sudden. But from what I understand, a lot of the stuff they were talking about had to do with him – not other people.”

On keeping Jones from testing positive again: “He knows not to take anything without letting us know about it first. We obviously send it to (UFC VP of Athlete Relations Jeff) Novitzky and the people that control the USADA program at the UFC and have them review so it’s a second set of eyes. Get in writing that it’s a low-risk supplement, because there’s still a level of risk by taking supplements, and just go from there.”

Meanwhile, USADA has released their own statement on the deal with Jones and what it entails. USADA spokesperson Danielle Eurich said: “Importantly, if the athlete or support personnel fails to continue to cooperate and provide credible substantial assistance, USADA will reinstate the original sanction. These rules set out in 10.6.1.1 are crystal clear, and if they are not met, an individual would not be considered for a reduction based on substantial assistance.“