Former champion supports Dana White in vetoing Jon Jones at UFC Casa Branca: 'If it were me, I'd tell him to f*** off'

Jon Jones is a former UFC heavyweight champion. Photo: Instagram/UFC Brazil.

The possibility of Jon Jones returning to the UFC gained momentum after the historic event at the White House was announced for July 2026. However, Dana White expressed skepticism regarding the former heavyweight champion, stating that there is "a one in a billion chance" that he will be part of the card. For Michael Bisping, former middleweight champion and current commentator, the executive's distrust makes perfect sense.

Michael Bisping recalled that Jon Jones vacated the title by announcing his retirement shortly before the highly anticipated unification fight against Tom Aspinall. A short time later, when the special event was confirmed, the American reappeared and re-entered the UFC's anti-doping program, seeking to return to competition.

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“I don’t blame him (Dana). You can’t blame the man. What did he do? He promoted Jon Jones. He stood his ground and said he was the number 1 pound-for-pound fighter. They even made a video. They offered him $30 million apparently (to fight Aspinall). I don’t know if it’s true, but that’s the number that’s going around. And in the end, he gives the middle finger, goes to Thailand, lives the best life, makes fun of everyone, makes Tom Aspinall wait for God knows how long. Then an opportunity like UFC White House comes along and suddenly he wants a piece of the pie. If it were me, I’d tell him to f*** off,” Bisping declared on his podcast. Believe you me.

According to Bisping, if Jon Jones truly wants to fight at the special event, he must first demonstrate commitment. In Bisping's view, the only way to regain Dana White's trust would be to accept another challenge in the octagon before July.

"If I were Dana, I'd say, 'Okay, you want to fight at the White House? Prove it!' I'd tell him to fight again first. You're a heavyweight, you don't need to cut weight, and the White House event isn't until July," he added.