‘It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.’ But Jon Jones never read Harry Potter. Of late, UFC CEO Dana White brought down the hammer on rumors that ‘Bones’ was part of the White House card, but the fight fell through. He claimed that Jones was never part of the card, adding that Jones is effectively retired, during the UFC 326 post-fight presser. This enraged the former heavyweight champion, who went on a now-deleted X tirade. But now, it’s White’s turn! 

“I never said there were no negotiations,” White told a reporter about Jones’ pushback on his claims. “I said, ‘Were they talking to Jon Jones?’ They talked to everybody. Everybody was talked to. Not one word of what I said was not not true about the whole Jon Jones thing. And how many times have I sat up here and said he’s not fighting at the White House? 

The UFC CEO had previously stated that he can’t rely on the undefeated heavyweight, who once turned down a fight against Tom Aspinall despite reportedly being offered $30 million. White also referenced earlier reports in which Jon Jones admitted he suffers from arthritis in his hips and may require hip replacement surgery.

“And what did I say that wasn’t true?” he continued during the presser. “It’s all true. And you guys all bust my balls about how much I love Jon Jones. Jon’s the greatest of all time.

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Still, he dismissed the idea that Jones would have received a spot on the card. Dana White explained that his matchmakers had approached everyone to put together a card worthy of the White House event. But that doesn’t mean it guaranteed them the spot on the card. This, of course, followed Jones’ tweets, where he claimed he was relieved from the promotion.

“So all of this negotiating was complete bulls—t, is that what you want me to agree to publicly?” Jones wrote. “I’m released from the UFC?!!”

“Man, how f—king painful.”

“Laying in my bed, wrapping my head around this perception. All I can think is how f—king painful.”

“And then the other half of me’s like, but is it really though?”

The final White House card will be headlined by Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje, with a co-main event fight between Alex Pereira, who Jones wanted to fight at White House, and Ciryl Gane on June 14. But let’s imagine for a minute that Jones was fighting Pereira, what does the man who wanted to fight Jones the most think about the fight? 

Tom Aspinall on Alex Pereira vs. Jon Jones

Before the fight between Pereira and Gane was confirmed, UFC heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall weighed in on rumors about a potential clash between Jones and Pereira. The matchup was widely discussed as a possible headline fight, and Aspinall didn’t appear to have any issues with it.

“Alex Pereira is a generational talent, I think he’s one of the best UFC fighters that the UFC has ever seen, to be honest with you,” Aspinall said. “I think he’s fantastic, and it’s a very interesting fight. Everybody who is a UFC fan will be tuning in. I think it’s a great fight.”

Aspinall, of course, waited for a fight against Jon Jones for over a year. Even though UFC promised a clash down the line, one never came. In the end, Jones abruptly announced his retirement, which allowed the title to be given to Aspinall. 

Funnily enough, though, now Aspinall, not out of a fault of his own, is the one holding the heavyweight division hostage. He fought Ciryl Gane last year, where the French heavyweight accidentally poked him in both eyes. This resulted in the fight being ruled a no-contest after just one round. 

Now, Aspinall has gone through two surgeries, and there’s no word on when he may return. When he does return, however, he would likely face the winner of Pereira vs. Gane. But do you think Pereira can win? And do you think about White’s response to Jones’ deleted tweets?