If Jon Jones believes he retired several months in the past, UFC President Dana White appears to disagree strongly with that timeline.
Speaking after UFC 317 on Saturday night, White addressed recent social media posts from Jones. In these posts, Jones stated he had informed the promotion he was stepping away from the sport following his victory over Stipe Miocic but was repeatedly encouraged by the UFC to reconsider his decision. Jones acknowledged discussions about a potential bout with Tom Aspinall did occur, but he vehemently denied that any definitive agreement was ever reached for that fight, contrary to White`s earlier claim that the fight was “done” before Jones unexpectedly announced his retirement.
Jones had tweeted, “I was told 1,000 times to just reconsider and just give it more time. That’s the truth. If the fight was done, trust me, I would be fighting. Did we start negotiating at one point yes, but [it] was never done. My job at the time was to sit back and be quiet about it and that’s exactly what I did. I was enjoying my life that should’ve been obvious to you guys.”
While not escalating the debate, White directly contradicted Jones` statements about the timing of his retirement when asked at the UFC 317 post-fight press conference.
“That’s not true,” White stated regarding Jones` assertion he had effectively retired back in November. “I’m telling you the truth. Believe who you want to believe.”
Differences in perspective between White and Jones regarding past events are not uncommon, though this instance might be their last public disagreement.
For his part, White remained calm when discussing Jones` claims, reiterating his stance that the planned Aspinall fight was agreed upon before the former heavyweight champion changed his mind.
Regardless of the disputed timeline, the outcome is the same: Jones has vacated the title and retired, making Tom Aspinall the undisputed heavyweight champion.
Regarding Aspinall`s next move, White declined to speculate on potential opponents when asked about a likely matchup against Ciryl Gane.
Aspinall himself has indicated interest in fighting Gane, but no official decisions have been made yet as the heavyweight division moves forward following Jones` departure from the sport.
