The UFC got about the best PR it could have possibly dreamed of on Thursday night's Tonight Show, as Jay Leno introduced Jon Jones as both a champion and a hero for stopping a robbery prior to winning his title fight at UFC 128.
Most of Jones' appearance on the Tonight Show focused on that incident on Saturday afternoon, as Jones explained how he heard an elderly woman scream that she had been robbed and then chased down and tackled the robber. Leno gave Jones plenty of time to tell the story and then gushed over his heroic actions.
The Tonight Show appearance then turned to Jones' victory over Shogun Rua, with the Tonight Show airing highlights while Jones explained what MMA is to an audience that was likely made up mostly of people who had never heard of Jones and never seen the UFC.
"MMA stands for mixed martial arts, and it's every martial art ever created brought together," Jones explained in his sort of MMA 101 lesson.
The appearance was everything the UFC could have asked for: The Tonight Show's band played the UFC's theme music as Jones walked out, Jones looked dapper in his suit, and previous guest Kirstie Allie stayed on the couch and flirted with Jones. The fresh new face of the UFC is ready to be a star.