UFC President Dana White Backs Champ Jon Jones’ Explanation of Phone Being Hacked

Followers of UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones on Instagram were shocked on Tuesday when a series of homophobic comments were made using the 26-year-old’s account. Jones went on Twitter later that day to explain that his phone was hacked and someone else made the offensive posts.

Just got a new phone. Changing all of my social media passwords. Apparently I was hacked.

— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) April 16, 2014

On Wednesday, UFC president Dana White reacted to the situation following The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale in Quebec City, Canada.

“He got hacked. Originally when I found out he was saying he was being hacked, I was like, what are we all gonna say stupid stuff and then say that we were hacked,” said White. “But if you look at his timeline. First of all, he rarely ever posts anything or responds on Instagram. He got hacked. They got in there. They changed his password. Like 11 people had his password that surround him. We got that squashed and taken care of.”

If Jones made the comments himself, it would be a clear violation of the UFC’s code of conduct policies.  In April 2013, the company suspended heavyweight Matt Mitrione for his comments on The MMA Hour about transgender fighter Fallon Fox.  In 2011, the UFC released bantamweight Miguel Torres following Torres making a joke about rape on Twitter.

Jones is scheduled to defend his title on April 26 at UFC 172 in Baltimore against Glover Teixeira. Questioned if this situation will be a distraction to Jones, White responded that he doesn’t think so.

“I don’t think it will,” said the UFC president. “This thing actually, there was really no real reaction to it once he put out that he was hacked.”