At a time when trashing Jon Jones is the popular move, Valentina Shevchenko is going against the grain and coming to the defense of a fellow UFC champion.
Jones (26-1 MMA, 20-1 UFC) made headlines for all the wrong reasons Thursday when he was arrested in Albuquerque, N.M., on multiple charges: driving under the influence, negligent use of a firearm, possession of an open container and no proof of insurance.
Run-ins with the law are a recurring issue for the light heavyweight champion, and after the arrest many within the MMA community reveled in Jones’ latest issue. Shevchenko (19-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC), the women’s flyweight titleholder, wasn’t one of those people, though. Instead, she tried to lift up Jones by sharing her personal experience with him from when they shared February’s UFC 247 card and both successfully defended their belts (via Twitter):
So sad the modern world is all about hype!
Now many people starting to insult Jon Jones without knowing his real situation!
Fighting on the same card , I could see he is kind and noble man !
Him being in all that difficult times – he will be back Stronger !
Jones retained his 205-pound belt in the UFC 247 main event when he edged Dominick Reyes in a hotly contested decision at Toyota Center in Houston. Just prior, Shevchenko kept her 125-pound strap with a third-round TKO of Katlyn Chookagian.
It was the first time Jones and Shevchenko shared a card together, and it appears they had some bonding time that allowed “The Bullet” to form an opinion on “Bones” that is likely to earn her some blowback.
Valentina Shevchenko defends 'kind and noble' Jon Jones after fellow UFC champ's arrest