Jon
Jones’ last Octagon appearance came in November 2024. |
Getty/UFC
Jon
Jones may still get his wish of fighting at the
UFC’s White House event before all is said and done.
During a meet and greet at the Brook Casino in New
Hampshire, the former two-division champion revealed he was in
still talks with the promotion to compete on the highly-anticipated
card.
”I’m in negotiations with the UFC about this White House thing, as
well,” Jones said (video via Championship Rounds). “I’m a very,
very, very proud American, and I cannot wait to represent one more
time. So, we’ll see what happens.”
🚨 Jon Jones
reveals he’s in talks to fight on the UFC White House card 👀“I’m in negotiations with the UFC about this White House [fight] as
well. I’m a very proud American, and I cannot wait to represent one
more time.” pic.twitter.com/5dySHjvDc4— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS)
March 1, 2026
Jones hasn’t fought since defending the heavyweight crown with a
third-round stoppage of Stipe
Miocic at UFC 309 in November 2024. While the promotion worked
hard to put together a title unification bout between “Bones” and
Tom
Aspinall, that possibility fell by the wayside when Jones
vacated the belt and announced his retirement this past June. That
farewell proved to be short lived, however, as Jones re-entered the
drug testing pool after President Donald Trump announced that a UFC
event would be held on White House grounds.
While Jones has been eager to represent his country, UFC CEO Dana
White has shut down the possibility of the former champion
competing at the White House on multiple occasions. More recently,
Jones revealed that he has been
plagued by arthritis to a point where he has qualified for hip
replacement surgery. However, “Bones” added that those issues
wouldn’t prevent him from fighting at the White House if presented
with the opportunity.
‘Bones’ vs. ‘Poatan?’
Jones’ statement regarding ongoing negotiations comes on the heels
of the announcement that Alex
Pereira has vacated the UFC light heavyweight belt. Both Jones
and Pereira have lobbied to fight each other in recent months, a
possibility that could be more likely now that “Poatan” appears to
be ready to move up a weight class. No bouts have been confirmed
for UFC White House, but White recently stated that he was ready to
reveal the card in the near future.
“This week I should announce the White House fight,” White said
during an Instagram live video on Friday. “This week I should be
announcing it.”