UFC CEO Dana White made it clear once again that Jon Jones will not be given a role on the historic White House fight card planned for 2026. Jones has been campaigning aggressively for a spot, but White insists that the former champion is not someone he can depend on for an event of that scale.
White addressed the situation during his appearance on Andrew Schultz’s Flagrant podcast. Jones recently released several promotional videos trying to push himself onto the lineup and even asked for a private meeting with White to apologize for how he handled the collapse of the Tom Aspinall fight discussions. None of it changed White’s stance.
White Repeats His Reasoning
White said the problem is trust and reliability. He explained that he already attempted to book Jones against Aspinall and felt burned when Jones backed away after both sides had reached an agreement.
White stated:
“I have not said yes or no to anybody yet, but I cannot put Jon Jones in a position where he can affect this. I had a deal with him. We had a deal to fight Tom Aspinall. We had a deal and he said, ‘You know what? I am not going to do it.’ I cannot be in that position. I have to have someone reliable.”
White then compared Jones to Conor McGregor, insisting the Irish star has always stepped up despite the criticism surrounding him.
“People talk s*** about McGregor. McGregor, when you walk in the room and you are three days out from the fight and you are like, ‘Your opponent fell out,’ he says, ‘Alright, I am going to the gym. When I get done working out, let me know who I am fighting.’ He does not care, does not want any input, does not get thirty people on the phone. So you can say what you want about Conor. Conor has been that guy for us.”
White revealed that the UFC plans to begin building the lineup in February. Meanwhile, McGregor’s coach John Kavanagh told The Ariel Helwani Show that McGregor is already preparing as if the event is locked in.
Kavanagh said:
“On our end, we are one hundred percent in. He has asked me to basically lay out a program between now and June of how we will ramp up the training. He is showing up again. He is back in the gym most mornings, early. He is just having fun with it.”
Jones had previously admitted he mishandled the conversations for the Aspinall fight and even asked for a thirty million dollar purse. According to Ariel Helwani, the UFC actually met that number, but Jones still walked away from the offer.
The situation has made White unwilling to gamble on Jones for a massively important event like the White House card.
Many fighters have expressed interest in being part of the first ever UFC event at the White House. Among them is new welterweight champion Islam Makhachev, who just captured his second division title after beating Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322. White noted after the event that Makhachev is a strong candidate and clarified that the card will not follow any “America versus the world” theme.
For now, the message is simple: Jones’ campaign continues, but White’s answer has not moved an inch.
