Pound-for-pound great and former UFC champion Jon Jones has announced that he is out of retirement and back in training, preparing for the yet-to-be-announced UFC White House card.
Jones had been out of action for much of 2025 following his win over Stipe Miocic in 2024. He was slated to face interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall in a unification bout but repeatedly delayed the fight before announcing his retirement, which left Aspinall as the new champion. After that, the UFC revealed plans for the White House tournament, and now Jones appears ready to throw his name back into the mix, even though UFC CEO Dana White has yet to confirm anything.
White expressed doubt about booking Jones for the event, citing his history of outside-the-cage controversies, including failed drug tests and multiple arrests. He went as far as to say it would be a “billion-to-one” shot that Jones fights at UFC White House. According to the official UFC anti-doping website, Jones, 38, has been tested three times in 2025, including once after his retirement announcement.
“Let me ask you. What do you think Jon would do in the next couple of months that would make me trust putting him on the White House card?” White said after UFC 319. “So I already said that I don’t trust him. And you’re asking me what could he do for me to trust him in the next three months? You don’t trust him! I don’t talk to him either. I haven’t talked to him at all. If I had to make odds, it’s a billion-to-one that I put Jon Jones on the White House card.”
Despite White’s skepticism, Jones insists he is not retired.
“I am not retired,” Jones said in a clip posted by his public relations manager. “I’m actively training five days a week and I’m in the UFC’s drug-testing pool.”
When asked about his status for UFC White House, Jones responded: “I don’t really know. It’s kind of out of my control right now. I’m training for the event, I’ll be ready for the event, that’s my goal, that’s my intention, but ultimately it’s up to the boss.”
Jones last fought in November at UFC 309, where he scored a TKO win over Stipe Miocic to defend his heavyweight title.
Jon Jones remains one of the most popular figures in MMA history. His return would generate massive interest, but questions about his reliability and the UFC’s willingness to give him another shot on such a historic card comes to mind.
