Jon Jones ‘disappointed’ in Dana White denying him UFC White House headline spot

UFC 285 Press Conference — Jon Jones and Dana White | Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Jon Jones isn’t letting anyone stop him from fighting at the White House.

Following Saturday’s UFC 318 event in New Orleans, UFC CEO Dana White was asked if he was entertaining the idea of the recently retired Jones coming back in July 2026 to fight at a proposed UFC White House event to commemorate the 250th Independence Day in the United States.

White was blunt in shooting down the suggestion, saying, “You know how I felt about him. I just can’t risk putting him in big positions in a big spot and have something go wrong, especially the White House card.”

Jones has a checkered legal history as well as several failed drug tests that have resulted in him being forced to relinquish titles, overturned results, and he once refused a short-notice fight against Chael Sonnen that resulted in him being blamed for the cancellation of UFC 151 in 2012.

On Sunday, Jones responded to White’s comments, saying he’s “disappointed” in White’s assessment of his reliability.

I heard the comments made at last night’s press conference. While I was a little disappointed, I’m still in the UFC’s drug testing pool, staying sharp, and continuing to train like a professional. I’ll be ready for whatever comes next.

In a recent interview, I shared that the…

— Jonny Meat (@JonnyBones) July 20, 2025

“I heard the comments made at last night’s press conference,” Jones wrote. “While I was a little disappointed, I’m still in the UFC’s drug-testing pool, staying sharp, and continuing to train like a professional. I’ll be ready for whatever comes next.

“In a recent interview, I shared that the opportunity to fight at the White House gave me something deeper to fight for, a ‘why’ that goes beyond paychecks or belts. Fighting for my country gives me a greater purpose!

“The silver lining in all this is knowing the fans see my heart. They see, I am ready and willing to take on anyone, to represent my country on a historic stage. For me, it’s never been just about the opponent. I’m chasing legacy, something timeless, something bigger than the moment.

“So for now, I’ll keep grinding, stay patient, and stay faithful. I’m ready to fight on July 4th.”

Jones, 38, announced his retirement this past June in the middle of a long-running feud with interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall that did not yield an actual fight booking due to Jones repeatedly dismissing Aspinall as a worthy challenger. At the time of his retirement, Jones held the undisputed heavyweight title, and it was expected that the two would eventually meet in a unification bout.

Instead, Jones chose to hang up the gloves (temporarily, it seems), and Aspinall was promoted to undisputed champion status in his absence.

The news of Jones’ retirement was met with a mixed reaction, with some questioning whether he’d even stay retired for long and others just wanting him to go away after competing sporadically the past few years.

Jones is widely hailed as one of the greatest fighters of all time. In his prime, he reigned over the UFC’s light heavyweight division for nearly a decade, and he has never suffered a true loss in 30 pro bouts. His legacy is checkered due to outside-of-the-cage misbehavior, with the most recent allegations against him claiming he left the scene of an accident and also threatened law enforcement officers.

Jon Jones ‘disappointed’ in Dana White denying him UFC White House headline spot

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