Days after Dana White labelled him the greatest UFC fighter of all-time, Jon Jones said he would walk away from his light heavyweight title amid a pay dispute with the promotion.
The American, 32, has his sights set on a lucrative heavyweight clash with Francis Ngannou, the division’s No 2-ranked challenger, but said the UFC did not want to pay him enough to make the step up a weight.
White, the promotion’s president, said at the weekend that Jones demanded “crazy money” and quoted sums of $15 million (Dh55m) to $30 million. Only last week, White had trumpeted the reigning pound-for-pound No 1 as the greatest UFC combatant in history.
However, late Sunday, Jones tweeted: “To the light-heavyweight title - veni, vidi, vici,” (the Latin phrase for “I came, I saw, I conquered”).
Asked by one of his 2.3m Twitter followers if he was giving up his title, Jones responded with a simple “Yes”.
When another follower suggested he was damaging himself more than the UFC, the light heavyweight champion replied: “I hurt myself every time I walk out there and take a punch to the head and not feel my pay is worth it anymore.”
Jones and White have been involved in a public spat this past week, after the former threatened to walk away from negotiations for the Ngannou fight, calling the discussions “unbelievable”.
After White claimed Jones wanted “Deontay Wilder money” – a reference to the well-remunerated former WBC heavyweight boxing champion – both men accused the other of lying.
Following the UFC’s latest event on Sunday, White hit back at Jones’ claims the promotion was tarnishing his legacy, telling reporters in Las Vegas that Jones was in fact doing that himself.
“He can do whatever he wants to do. He can sit out, he can fight, he can whatever," White said.
"Jon Jones can say whatever he wants publicly. It’s his God-given right here in America. And when he’s ready to come back and fight, he can.”
Jones, lightweight champion for almost a decade, has never been too far from headlines, both inside and outside the octagon.
Although he remains officially undefeated as a champion, with a mixed martial arts record of 26 wins and one loss (and one no contest), he has been twice stripped of the title - once for a hit-and-run incident and the other a failed drug test.
In March this year, Jones for arrested in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and subsequently pleaded guilty to DWI (driving under the influence). It was his second such offence.
if you go
Getting there
Etihad (Etihad.com), Emirates (emirates.com) and Air France (www.airfrance.com) fly to Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, from Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively. Return flights cost from around Dh3,785. It takes about 40 minutes to get from Paris to Compiègne by train, with return tickets costing €19. The Glade of the Armistice is 6.6km east of the railway station.
Staying there
On a handsome, tree-lined street near the Chateau’s park, La Parenthèse du Rond Royal (laparenthesedurondroyal.com) offers spacious b&b accommodation with thoughtful design touches. Lots of natural woods, old fashioned travelling trunks as decoration and multi-nozzle showers are part of the look, while there are free bikes for those who want to cycle to the glade. Prices start at €120 a night.
More information: musee-armistice-14-18.fr ; compiegne-tourisme.fr; uk.france.fr
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
RESULT
Argentina 0 Croatia 3
Croatia: Rebic (53'), Modric (80'), Rakitic (90' 1)
Schedule:
Pakistan v Sri Lanka:
28 Sep-2 Oct, 1st Test, Abu Dhabi
6-10 Oct, 2nd Test (day-night), Dubai
13 Oct, 1st ODI, Dubai
16 Oct, 2nd ODI, Abu Dhabi
18 Oct, 3rd ODI, Abu Dhabi
20 Oct, 4th ODI, Sharjah
23 Oct, 5th ODI, Sharjah
26 Oct, 1st T20I, Abu Dhabi
27 Oct, 2nd T20I, Abu Dhabi
29 Oct, 3rd T20I, Lahore
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
