Jon Jones retires from competition, UFC CEO Dana White says - ESPN

Jon Jones, widely considered the greatest mixed martial artist of all time, has retired from competition, UFC CEO Dana White announced on Saturday.

According to White, Jones, 37, informed the promotion of his decision to retire on Friday. The UFC had been working towards booking a heavyweight title unification bout between Jones and interim champion Tom Aspinall, but with Jones's sudden retirement, Aspinall is now elevated to undisputed champion.

«Jon Jones called us last night and retired,» White said during a press conference in Azerbaijan. 'Jon Jones is officially retired. Tom Aspinall is the heavyweight champion of the UFC."

Jones did not immediately comment on White's announcement. White said the UFC will work with Aspinall next week on booking his first title defense.

Jones (28-1) moved up from the light heavyweight division to capture the vacant heavyweight championship over Ciryl Gane in 2023. He defended the belt once during his 27-month title reign, in a third-round TKO victory over Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 in November.

A bout between Jones and Aspinall would have been one of the biggest in UFC heavyweight history, but Jones repeatedly downplayed the potential matchup, arguing that a win over Aspinall would have done nothing for his legacy. Jones's disinterest caused many observers to accuse him of ducking Aspinall. An online petition calling for Jones to be stripped of his title actually garnered nearly 200,000 signatures.

«I obviously feel bad for Tom that he lost all that time and money, but we'll make it up to him. Tom Aspinall is a good guy. He's been incredible through this whole process that we've gone through,» White said. «He's been willing to do anything — fight him anywhere and anytime and do this,