Dana White issues two-word verdict on Jon Jones’ – Sports News
UFC boss Dana White has confirmed Jon Jones will return to the octagon this summer and defend his heavyweight title – but stopped short of confirming who his opponent would be.
Jones hasn’t entered the cage since late last year, when he defeated former champion Stipe Miocic via stoppage. Fans have been pining to see the virtually-undefeated Jones face off against interim champion Tom Aspinall, though Jones isn’t as keen.
The 37-year-old has instead set his sights on what he refers to as ‘legacy fights’ – taking on former champions or current champions from other weight classes rather than up-and-comers.
That’s left the prospect of an Aspinall fight seeming unlikely, with a clash against light-heavyweight king Alex Pereira the more fancied option. Pereira fights this Saturday at UFC 313 to defend the belt Jones owned twice.
It isn’t clear whether he’d be asked to move up for Jones’ heavyweight belt or whether the fight would be made back at 175lbs for the light-heavyweight strap.
Speaking to ESPN’s First Take on Wednesday, White confirmed Jones would return this year, simply saying: “This summer,” when asked for a date.
White also spoke about the prospect of Pereira moving up, saying: “He’s willing to move up to heavyweight and fight whoever. He’s willing to fight [Jones] and he’s willing to fight anyone.” Further fuelling the speculation, White said of Jones: “Jones will fight anyone too. Don’t let the internet fool you about Jon Jones. He wants to do it.”
Aspinall is currently waiting in the wings to find out what Jones will do for his next fight, and is yet to learn whether he’ll keep the interim belt or fight for the full version.
Jones has made it clear he’s reluctant to fight Aspinall, and the Brit says he’s tired of asking.
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Speaking to his YouTube channel, he said: “There’s a lot of people out there who know me mainly for talking about Jon Jones, which is a shame, because there’s a lot of stuff I’ve done in the UFC and I’m completely aware of that.
“I’ve been staying away from the media and talking about Jon Jones a lot because in all honesty, I’m sick of talking about it myself.”
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