Dana White responds to Jon Jones’ decision to vacate UFC title - ‘He’s made enough money to retire’

It doesn’t seem as if Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President, Dana White, is losing any sleep after one of his biggest stars, Jon Jones, announced on social media that he’d be vacating his Light Heavyweight title. In a brief statement to Vancouver Courier, White said that if Jones decides to walk away from the company and retire, he’s made more than enough money with the promotion to be able to make that choice.

“Jon Jones is one of the greatest to ever do it,” said White. “The decision he wants to make regarding his career is up to him. The reality is that he’s made enough money from fighting that he’s now in the position to retire and never work again in his life.”

“Bones” announced his decision late Sunday (May 31, 2020) after weeks of back-and-forth spats with White regarding his increase in pay request to face Francis Ngannou. According to White, Jones wanted Deontay Wilder-type money to the tune of $15 to $30 million, while “Bones” denied such claims, stating that actual figures were never discussed.

In the end, Jones decided he had enough of White’s “lies” and shocked the combat world by stating he’d be saying farewell to the title he’s defended 11 times, most recently against Dominick Reyes at UFC 247 earlier this year.

As far as retiring, that doesn’t seem to be the case for Jones, as he never mentioned he would stop fighting altogether. But if he wants to fight for another promotion, he is going to have to convince White and Co. to actually release him from his contract, which will be another battle in itself.