Lupita Jones is officially out at Miss Universe Mexico. The former Miss Universe, the first Mexican woman to ever win the crown in 1991, had been in charge of the organization tasked with choosing the Mexican representative for the pageant for thirty years.
Cynthia de la Vega, another former Miss Mexico, is set to replace her.
Jones, who was present at the 2023 gala in El Salvador, spoke about her departure in a video posted to social media where she stated that “Miss Universe has not confirmed anything to me, although everything indicates that what is being said is true.” She clarified that she had been made aware of the rumors going around and that she was told by those in charge that nothing had been made final when it came to the direction the Miss Universe Mexico was going in the next year.
She went on to add that she hadn’t broached the subject before out of respect for Melissa Flores, Mexico’s representative at the 2023 pageant. She even went as far as to suggest that her departure from Miss Universe Mexico was related to the fact that Flores did not make it to the Top 20 in this year’s pageant, saying: “It was very difficult for them to let the latest queen brought by Lupita Jones shine. I asked that the treatment towards my representative be honest, (but) I think my request did not work.”
A few hours after Jones made her announcement, Miss Universe Mexico confirmed Cynthia de la Vega as its new director in a press conference alongside Raúl Rocha Cantú, the owner of the franchise in Mexico, and Miss Universe owner Anne Jakrajutatip. She had been rumored to be taking Jones’ place since the news of Jones’ ouster had been first reported.
De la Vega said: “It fills me with joy to reach this moment in my life. With this new organization, we seek excellence, forming a team of quality and a solid structure. We are going to return to our roots as ‘Miss Universe Mexico’, propelling girls towards greatness.”
De la Vega was a previous Nuestra Belleza Mundo México titleholder who was dethroned and replaced in 2011. According to Jones, de la Vega was dethroned because of a “lack of dedication and discipline.” De la Vega refuted that claim and said that her title was taken away because of her weight. “Organizers of the Nuestra Belleza Mexico contest demanded that I lose a few kilos, but they never provided a nutritionist or any other assistance to ensure the weight loss.”
It also seems like Jones’s comments from her Instagram Live about her replacement reached the ears of Jakrajutatip, according to Infobae. During an interview with Maxine Woodside on Todo para la Mujer, she said, “I’m not in a position to say who did a good or bad job, but we want to renew the franchise and we want to push with something fresher.”