UFC 197 headliner Jon Jones pleads not guilty to drag racing charges in New Mexico

Jon Jones is fighting a quintet of traffic citations that triggered a brief jail stint this past week, but they won’t get in the way of his interim title fight with Ovince Saint Preux at UFC 197.

Jones, 28, has plead not guilty to the tickets and will head to trial after he was pulled over in downtown Albuquerque, N.M., and cited for drag racing, among other charges, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court spokesperson Camille Baca told MMAjunkie.

In court, Jones will face the police officer he called a “pig,” “despicable” and a “liar” (see the video above). His trial is set for May 11 at 2 p.m. MDT at the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court.

The former light heavyweight champion received his new court date after being granted a waiver of arraignment that allowed him to skip an appearance today, Baca said.

Jones (21-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) is preparing for his fight with Saint Preux (19-7 MMA, 7-2 UFC), which headlines the April 23 pay-per-view event at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena. He was scheduled to face champ and rival Daniel Cormier (17-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) before an injury forced Cormier to withdraw from the event.

Jones’ latest legal troubles endangered his UFC 197 participation when they landed him in a city jail a probation violation. Although the tickets he received are not serious, he is still serving 18 months of probation stemming from a plea deal this past September that allowed him to avoid jail time. Under the terms of his agreement, he was ordered to give 72 public speaking appearances and not break any laws.

Jones completed the former requirement, reportedly giving 76 appearances, per his attorney. But after receiving one day of community service from a trio of traffic citations in February, the New Mexico Department of Corrections, which oversees his probation, arrested and jailed him without bail after his latest traffic incident.

After spending two days in jail, Jones agreed to another plea deal that will require him to complete 60 additional hours of community service, enroll in a driver improvement course and anger management classes, and receive the permission of his probation officer before driving.

The presiding judge at his hearing warned Jones the penalties will be much worse if he again breaks the law; Jones already has hired a professional driver, according to a report on MMAFighting.com.

During the hearing, Jones’ attorney announced the fighter’s intention to fight the five citations, arguing he was profiled by the police officer, who was combative almost from the outset in a lapel video released to the public.

Jones denied drag racing in the video and in subsequent interviews, saying he simply revved the engine of his Corvette to acknowledge fans. The police officer, Jason Brown, claimed he took off at a high rate of speed and failed to slow his car.

The traffic stop was the latest in a long line of vehicular woes for the ex-champ, who was stripped of the title in the wake of his hit-and-run accident.

For more on UFC 197, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.