Jon Jones Retires from the Octagon: End of an Era in the UFC
The mixed martial arts (MMA) world is shaken by the announcement of the retirement of Jon Jones, considered by many to be the best fighter of all time. The news was confirmed by UFC CEO Dana White this Saturday. According to White, Jones, 37, communicated his decision to retire on Friday. The UFC was working on organizing a heavyweight title unification fight between Jones and interim champion Tom Aspinall.Jones has yet to comment on White’s announcement. The UFC will work with Aspinall next week to schedule his first title defense. Jones (28-1) moved up from the light heavyweight division to conquer the vacant heavyweight championship, defeating Ciryl Gane in 2023. During his 27-month reign, he defended the belt once, achieving a TKO victory in the third round against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 in November. The fight between Jones and Aspinall promised to be one of the most important events in UFC heavyweight history. However, Jones downplayed this possible matchup, arguing that a victory over Aspinall would not add anything to his legacy. This stance generated criticism and accusations of avoiding the fight with Aspinall. An online petition was even launched that accumulated almost 200,000 signatures, requesting that Jones be stripped of his title. Jones, who resides and trains in Albuquerque, New Mexico, has been recognized as the best mixed martial artist of all time for years. At 21, he became the youngest champion in UFC history, after defeating Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua for the 205-pound title in 2011. He accumulated a record of 16-0 in UFC championship fights, the most of all time. He is one of nine fighters who have held UFC titles in multiple weight classes. His 22 UFC victories place him fifth in history. Throughout his career, Jones faced legal problems outside the octagon. In 2015, he was arrested and charged with a felony hit-and-run, after leaving the scene of a car accident that caused injuries to a 25-year-old pregnant woman. He was suspended from competition for a year in 2016, after testing positive for performance-enhancing substances. Jones always maintained that these positive results were due to contaminated legal supplements.“Jon Jones called us last night and retired. Jon Jones is officially retired. Tom Aspinall is the UFC heavyweight champion,” White stated during a press conference in Azerbaijan.
Dana White, UFC CEO
