“He’s been speaking at schools and kids organizations for quite some time. His message is a little different now… His message to kids now is one that is very poignant. He just has a great message to tell these kids about coming back from adversity and righting your wrongs and not making the same mistakes twice… Really with Jon right now, it’s getting him where he needs to be and doing the things he needs to do for the court so he can come back and be a productive citizen [like] before all this happened. Way before this all happened, but a lot during his time off, people wondered what he was doing. What he was doing was a) training, and b) going and hanging out with the kids at the Boys and Girls Club, which I thought was really good for him. Obviously, he has something to tell them.”
-Denise White, CEO of EAG Sports Management and PR rep for former UFC Light Heavyweight Champ Jon Jones, talks to MMAJunkie.com about the work Jones has been doing with kids while on suspension due to his April hit and run.
Penick’s Analysis: This is the type of thing Jones will continue doing under the terms of his probation, but it’s great that he was doing so on his own while keeping his head down after the April incident. Obviously there are changes needed to his lifestyle and the choices he was making, all of which ultimately led to what happened in Albuquerque in April. When he’s reinstated, he’ll be out to show he’s a changed man; whether he actually is or not will be determined by his continued actions and behavior moving forward, but he’s been doing the right thing with the kids in ABQ, and hopefully that’s something he continues to keep up whether required via probation or not.
[Jon Jones art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
Leave a Reply