The Savage Truth: Jon Jones, Come On Down

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It has been a calamitous four months for the Ultimate Fighting Championship and its top stars. Ronda Rousey went down in flames in November, and Conor McGregor was humbled -- temporarily, I’m sure -- at UFC 196 on Saturday in Las Vegas. You can also add Holly Holm, the heroine who dealt Rousey her first defeat, Sage Northcutt and Paige VanZant to the list of promotional favorites who have been derailed in the past few months.

All of these fighters have been part of the massive success the UFC has experienced over the last year or so. Big increases in pay-per-view buy rates have coincided with the meteoric rise of Rousey and McGregor, but their losses show just how fleeting in-fight success can be in such a demanding sport. Their staying power is something of an uncertainty now that they have tasted defeat. I’d imagine they aren’t going to fall off a proverbial cliff, but can they be counted on to deliver the kinds of revenue they have in the past?

Enter Jon Jones. While Rousey and McGregor were tearing up the Octagon and lighting the social media world aflame, Jones was putting the pieces of a life and career in shambles back together. The clear pound-for-pound best fighter in the world -- in my opinion, anyway -- was patching up the lifeboat in which he found himself after a felony hit-and-run accident left him indefinitely suspended by the UFC.

Jones, a rare talent with two brothers in the NFL and model good looks, should have been a marketer’s dream as he stormed his way to becoming the youngest champion in UFC history. Unfortunately, his prickly nature and clear discomfort with being in the spotlight kept him at arm’s length from the media and fans that were dying to really get to know him. Part of that uneasiness, in hindsight, seems to have been due to that fact he did not want people to know what a hypocrite he was being.

Jones, the son of a preacher, held himself up as an example of Christian values. He had told people he was the one who would snitch on people for smoking marijuana. It was a tough facade to keep up for a young man with a pocket full of money, all the fame one might desire and a gaggle of hangers on who might not necessarily have his best interests at heart.

Here we are, nearly a year removed from the fateful April morning that might have ended Jones career. He’s on the precipice of returning to the sport he has so thoroughly dominated yet remained just a complimentary piece of it outside the cage.

I don’t mean to undersell his importance to the sport, but I honestly think he could have been as big a crossover star as Rousey or McGregor had he not been putting up the front he did for so long. With Rousey and McGregor getting knocked down a peg, the time is ripe for Jones to step back into the fold and take up his rightful spot atop the MMA world. He’s the best fighter in the sport, and if he has cleaned up his life, he should be afforded the spotlight that goes along with it.

Hopefully he has learned that he can’t make people like him, especially if he isn’t even letting them see the real him. The public has a funny way of knowing when it’s being sold a bill of goods, and Jones has felt the wrath of those he sought to fool. Now, as he makes his way back to the forefront of the sport, Jones seems more at ease with himself. He’s an imperfect person and as close to a perfect fighter as we have seen to date. Letting people see the real Jon “Bones” Jones, at least a little bit of him anyway, hopefully has reassured him that being himself is the best course of action as he moves forward in his life and career.

The fans at the UFC press conference on March 4 sure seemed like they have turned a corner. Jones received quite a bit of support while a bewildered Cormier -- normally a fan favorite -- couldn’t fathom that the crowd was booing him. It had to be reassuring for the former champion as he continues his journey back to the cage.

I’m sure the UFC wasn’t thrilled to have its golden children all wind up on the losing end over the past few months, but it still has the greatest fighter to ever Velcro up a pair of MMA gloves returning to the Octagon in April. At just 28 years of age, Jones has a long career ahead of him. We all know the kid can fight. If he can put the troublesome part of his past behind him, it should be a bright future for him and the UFC.

It’s time for the best fighter in the sport to become the biggest star in the sport. Make it happen, Jon.

Sherdog.com Executive Editor Greg Savage can be reached by email or via Twitter @TheSavageTruth.