Jon Jones Faces a New Criminal Charge Amid UFC Retirement

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

This is not how Jon Jones wanted to cement his name as a living legend in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).

Hours after announcing his retirement from the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), reports quickly surfaced that Jones is facing a new criminal offense over a misdemeanor charge of leaving the scene of an accident.

According to the Albuquerque Journal, Jones was ordered to appear in the court on July 24 for a bond arraignment.

Investigative findings confirmed that the youngest champion in the history of the UFC fled a car crash last February 21, 2025, where a woman was found in the passenger seat heavily intoxicated.

The Albuquerque police also said that the woman lacked clothing from the waist down, and it was Jones who was driving the car who crashed.

The woman involved was then interviewed by the police, and she added that from the time after the crash, Jones called her 13 times and texted her.

Days after the car crash scene, the police went to Jones, and the UFC superstar admitted that the woman came from his house and was intoxicated before the accident happened.

If he is proven guilty, this will be another disappointing outcome in his professional career after facing a failed drug test, a hit-and-run, and domestic violence in the past several years.

People were then quick to assume that Jones’ retirement wasn’t because of any UFC matters, but due to his personal misconduct outside the octagon.

In a press conference two days ago, UFC CEO Dana White already ended the Jones-Tom Aspinall saga after he announced that the former two-division undisputed champion decided to hang up his gloves.

The retirement was unexpected after Jones was still clapping back to his bashers on why he still didn’t want to fight Aspinall, the current interim heavyweight champion, to unify the division.

As per White, Aspinall will now be elevated as the undisputed heavyweight champion of the UFC, following Jones’ retirement.