Unlike UFC 151, White says Jon Jones overruled coaches to stay on UFC 197

UFC President Dana White doesn’t seem entirely positive Jon Jones would have fought replacement opponent Ovince Saint Preux at UFC 197 if his coaching staff had a final say in the matter.

Jones taking any fight on short notice has become a curious subject ever since the former light-heavyweight champion declined to face Chael Sonnen at UFC 151 in September 2012 after original foe Dan Henderson suffered a knee injury less than two weeks from fight night.

A familiar scenario occurred at UFC 197, which takes place Saturday at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena with a main card on pay-per-view following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass. In his comeback from a 16-month layoff, Jones (21-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) was meant to face champion Daniel Cormier (17-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) in a title rematch. “DC” suffered an injury and pulled out less than a month before fight night, though, and Saint Preux (18-7 MMA, 7-2 UFC) was tapped as the replacement.

After accepting the matchup with “OSP,” which will be contested for an interim 205-pound title, Jones admitted he typically wouldn’t have agreed to a new opponent with a different style without a full training camp. However, after a trying year in which he was suspended from the UFC and forced to deal with a bevy of legal issues, he said he wanted to give back to his supporters by competing.

When Jones’ decision-making went the other way for UFC 151, the show became the first event in company history to be canceled on short notice, and White put much of the blame on Jones and his team, calling his head coach Greg Jackson a “(expletive) sport killer.”

The UFC’s relationship has been turbulent with Jones ever since, but “Bones” has said he wants to better it moving forward. Fighting Saint Preux was likely a step in the right direction, but White is still seemingly bothered by the events from several years ago.

“Jon Jones pulling out of the Chael Sonnen fight was one of the most ridiculous things ever to happen in the sport of MMA,” White today told Jim Rome on CBS Sports Radio. “One of the most ridiculous decisions ever made. And that was his coaching staff. Jon Jones accepted that fight when I called him. Then he called his coaches, and they did the same thing on this fight. But Jon Jones kind of overrode it (this time) and took the fight.”

Although the situations at UFC 151 and UFC 197 come at different times in Jones’ career and under a different set of circumstances, White apparently believes that if Jones had not made the final decision, then this weekend’s card would have required a new main event.

White said he knows there’s value in fighters having a support system to guide their careers, but not when a decision should be easy.

“I think that you have to listen to the people that surround you because that’s why you have them there,” White said. “What’s the point if you’re not going to listen to them? But common sense has to prevail, too.”

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