A game developer from New York has been receiving death threats from MMA fans – because he shares a name with one of UFC’s bad boys.

Jon Jones – the author and self-described ‘tech geek’ – has been abused online at great length, simply because he is mistaken for the mixed martial artist of the same name.

4 Game developer Jon Jones has suffered terrible online abuse as he shares a name with a disgraced UFC fighter Credit: YouTube / ESPN

4 Jon Jones the UFC fighter was stripped of his light heavyweight championship belt for failing a drugs test in 2017 Credit: AP:Associated Press

Remarkably, the self-described 'tech geek' has managed to retain a sense of humour throughout the barrage of abuse.

He tweeted: "This week I've been called a cheater, liar, doper, a disgrace to the black community, wished I got Ebola and s**t myself to death, every type of physical and many types of sexual violence wished upon me, and one person hoped I lost my *soul*.

Referring to the MMA star's nickname, he added drily: "So I guess Bones is fighting, yeah?"

Former UFC light-heavyweight champion Jon 'Bones' Jones makes his return to the cage tonight in California after serving a ban from the sport for drug offences.

4 Video game developer Jon Jones has to retain a sense of humour over the abuse directed at his namesake Credit: Twitter

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He was stripped of his title in 2017 after being tested positive for anabolic steroid usage –his second drugs ban in two years.

The fighter was also fined and stripped of his title in 2015 after pleading guilty to leaving the scene of a car accident which he had caused.

As a consequence, he remains a controversial figure in the MMA world - and is heavily vilified by fans of the sport.

He goes into tonight's bout under another cloud after it was moved from Nevada to California to circumvent drugs testing laws, having insulted a Swedish journalist who asked questions about the venue shift.

I agree, Tony! Allowing me to fight for *any* reason would make the UFC look pretty bad. https://t.co/73Jvp9OK3J — Jon Jones (@jonjones) December 29, 2018

4 UFC fighter Jones defending the decision to move UFC 232 from Nevada to California on six days’ notice after he tested positive for low levels of a banned steroid Credit: AP:Associated Press

Meanwhile, his video game developer namesake finds the time to respond with humour to the anger thrown at him simply for tweeting under the handle @JonJones.

Tweeter Tony Ferguson said it was ‘a joke’ that @JonJones was allowed to compete after a failed drugs test – and the New Yorker responded in kind.

He said: “I agree, Tony! Allowing me to fight for *any* reason would make the UFC look pretty bad”.

Another tweeter using the handle F.B.I. launched an expletive-filled death threat toward the innocent Jones… before adding two minutes later “sorry wrong person”.