Israel Adesanya says he feels bad for Jon Jones following recent arrest
Israel Adesanya and Jon Jones are known to harbor feelings of mutual disgust and are often seen aiming shots at each other on social media, interviews, and press conferences. But even though the pair aren't friends, the news of Jones' arrest made Adesanya feel sorry for the reigning heavyweight champ.
Jones recently got arrested on charges of aggravated DWI and negligent use of a firearm. He then pleaded guilty to the charges and received four days of house arrest and one year of probation as punishment.
Initially, Adesanya was seen aiming digs at Jones' arrest on social media but he stopped making fun of Jones' arrest because he believes it's not fair to kick a man when he's down. In a recent interaction with ESPN, the current king of the middleweight division said that it disheartens him to watch a young man at the top of his game getting embroiled in controversies and slowly fading away.
“I did put some memes up because you have to give the people what they want, but at the end of the day, there’s some stuff that I said privately to my people that’s not gonna go out. He’s a young black man at the top of his game and he’s throwing it all away. At the end, when he was just sobbing, I felt bad for him. Because I can imagine myself in that position."
Adesanya recently defended and successfully retained his middleweight title against Yoel Romero in an underwhelming main event at UFC 248 and is expected to step inside the Octagon for his next defense against top contender Paulo Costa in the near future.