Jon Jones offered words of encouragement to Dustin Poirier following his public drunkenness arrest, drawing on his own extensive history of legal issues outside the cage to urge the retired lightweight to forgive himself and move forward.
Jones spoke to Red Corner MMA about the situation.
I hope that Dustin keeps his head high, gets back on his horse, and realizes that at the end of the day, news is news. Some people say there’s no such thing as bad press. I disagree with that, but press is press, you know? The whole world is talking about him right now. He didn’t hurt anybody. You know, he was drunk. We’ve all been drunk. Alcohol makes you do silly things. It’s important for him to forgive himself and just keep moving forward. At the end of the day, no one really cares. No one really cares.
Jones is familiar with public scrutiny over alcohol-related incidents, having pleaded guilty to driving under the influence and negligent use of a firearm in 2020 among other legal run-ins throughout his career. His most recent legal matter, a criminal summons in February 2025 involving allegations of fleeing an accident scene, was later dismissed.
Poirier was arrested Sunday at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and faces one count of public drunkenness. He has since posted publicly acknowledging he needs help with alcohol following his retirement from fighting in 2025.