Dana White: Jones not ducking Aspinall by retiring

Dana White doesn't believe Tom Aspinall's presence in the heavyweight division had anything to do with Jon Jones retiring with the championship.

"I said it a million times, I'll say it again: He's never ducked anybody," the UFC CEO told Oscar Willis of The Mac Life on Sunday.

White announced Saturday at the UFC Baku postfight press conference that Jones had officially ended his career, leaving a unification bout with Aspinall, the interim champion, on the table.

Jones, who confirmed his retirement shortly after White's revelation, had spent months downplaying a potential fight with Aspinall despite rabid fan interest. Aspinall, a 32-year-old Englishman, has finished every opponent he's had in the UFC within two rounds while trying to build his case as an all-time great.

"I think the reality is, whatever changed his mind with this fight - I don't know, you'd have to ask him that," White said of Jones. "But he's (37) years old, I don't know."

White had been adamant that Jones and Aspinall would fight up until Jones retired. The longtime promoter said at one point during the lengthy saga that he was "100%" sure the tilt would take place in 2025.

"We had the fight done," White said. "You saw me talking about it very confidently that this fight was going to happen, and then (Jones) changed his mind."

Jones elevated himself to UFC royalty by reigning over the light heavyweight division for years before moving up to heavyweight. He captured the vacant belt against Ciryl Gane in 2023 before defending it once against Stipe Miocic in 2024. His debut at heavyweight came shortly after Francis Ngannou, the champion at the time, parted ways with the UFC.