Dana White “hopes” Jon Jones fights in the UFC again, but makes no guarantees
UFC president Dana White said that he “hopes” UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones fights in the Octagon again, but it’s no guarantee.
Jones and the UFC have been in disagreement about fighter pay for months now, and Jones recently said that he had no problem sitting out numerous years if it helped the younger fighters get paid what they are worth. Jones and the UFC have always had a rocky relationship, but ever since the UFC refused to re-negotiate his contract for a potential Francis Ngannou megafight, Jones has been incredibly upset with White and the UFC.
Speaking to TMZ Sports, White said while Jones has promised he may hold out for multiple years if he can’t come to an agreement on financial terms with the UFC, the UFC president is still hopeful Jones fights in the Octagon again. Then again, White makes no guarantees.
“I hope so, but that’s up to him. If he decides to never fight again that’s up to him,” White said.
White confirmed in the interview that both Henry Cejudo and Conor McGregor are retired, but said that there is still the door open for Jones to return as he’s not officially retired.
“Jon Jones didn’t retire. We know where Jon Jones is at. Henry Cejudo and Conor McGregor are retired. I think everybody is doubting Conor because he did it before. There weren’t any issues with more money. He wasn’t trying to get more money or do any of this stuff. He’s retired,” White confirmed.
As for Jones, White said that the UFC has offered to bring the UFC light heavyweight champion into the organization’s Las Vegas headquarters and go through the numbers with their lawyers in order to show Jones that he’s being compensated fairly.
“Listen, at the end of the day, Jon Jones has enough money to retire. he can retire. The whole Jon Jones thing has been a rollercoaster ride for many, many years. Nothing surprises me with Jon Jones,” White said.
“We’ve offered Jon Jones to come out and walk Jon Jones through the numbers and Jon Jones was like, “I don’t give a f*ck what the numbers are, I don’t care. This is what I want and that’s that,'” White said.
Do you think Jones will fight in the UFC again?