Jon Jones has been removed from the rankings entirely on the UFC website, in both the pound-for-pound and light heavyweight fields.
Jones was due to be involved in one of the headline fights at the biggest card of the year in July at UFC 200, before he was flagged for a potential doping violation in advance of the event.
As a result, he was pulled from the card, and spoke about his devastation at finding there was something in his samples which ruled him out of competition. "I've been taking the same supplements the majority of my career," said Jones. "I've been so outspoken about being against any type of performance enhancers. To this day, I'm extremely against performance enhancers."
Don't write me off just yet, I know in my heart that I'm not a cheater. I trust in the system to help me prove it https://t.co/aE2vP9BlVp
— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) 18 July 2016
Jones faces a two-year ban, having just come back from another suspension as a result of a hit-and-run, but it looks as though the UFC have taken steps to distance themselves from the fighter as they removed him entirely from the rankings on their website.
The American had been one of the highest ranked fighters in the pound-for-pound listings, and was down as the interim champion in the light heavyweight division. However, his removal has lead many to speculate that he will be stripped of that title in the coming days as the UFC gets set to announce what punishment they will hand down.
He wasn't the only one removed from the rankings either, as Brock Lesnar is also missing in the latest list, along with Lyoto Machida. That has resulted in plenty of movement elsewhere, including Conor McGregor jumping up to fourth in the pound-for-pound rankings.
Neither Lesnar or Jones, who both tested positive for banned substances, are set to be fined by the UFC, with the decision being left up to the Nevada Athletic Commission.
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
