Recently, Dana White announced that UFC 250 will happen on the White House on June 14 of this yr, headlined by a bout between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje in a title unification bout. Two names notably not on the list of fights were former UFC champions Jon Jones and Conor McGregor, each of whom had publicly expressed interest in being a part of the event.
Now, White has spoken on how Jones particularly was never even that close to participating in UFC 250.
“The Jon Jones thing is bulls—,” White said, per Andreas Hale of ESPN.com. “I’m not saying they weren’t talking to Jon Jones and that Jon Jones wasn’t interested by the fight. What was even crazier was Jon Jones got here out and was like, ‘I’m in negotiations immediately for the White House card,’ after I had already sent a text to his lawyer saying, ‘Never going to occur ever.’”
He also added that Jones continues to be retired.
“Never, ever, ever — which I told you guys 100,000 times — was Jon Jones ever even remotely in my mind to fight on the White House,” White said. “He’s got arthritis in his hips. Apparently, he’s had doctors say that he needs a hip alternative.”
White also spoke on the prospect of a McGregor return to the UFC, noting that “We’re definitely talking to Conor,” even though it is unclear for the time being when that may happen.
It is going to be interesting to see how the UFC plans to stage the spectacle of a fight event on the White House, although the organization and a few of its stars have publicly aligned themselves with President Donald Trump lately, which definitely seems to have contributed to this event’s origins.
UFC 250 is slated to happen on June 14.