<
        >

          UFC's White: 'Billion-to-1' odds Jon Jones fights at White House

          • Brett OkamotoAug 17, 2025, 02:49 AM ET
            Close
              Brett Okamoto has reported on mixed martial arts and boxing at ESPN since 2010. He has covered all of the biggest events in combat sports during that time, including in-depth interviews and features with names such as Dana White, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Georges St-Pierre. He was also a producer on the 30 for 30 film: "Chuck and Tito," which looked back at the careers and rivalry of Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz. He lives in Las Vegas, and is an avid, below-average golfer in his spare time.
            Follow on X

          UFC CEO Dana White has no intention of booking Jon Jones to the promotion's proposed event at the White House in 2026 despite the fighter's interest.

          Jones, 38, retired from MMA in June instead of accepting a UFC heavyweight title unification bout against interim champion Tom Aspinall. Just weeks after his retirement, however, Jones announced that he was planning a comeback, citing the UFC's plans to host an event at the White House.

          Despite Jones' desire to fight on the card, White all but nixed the idea Saturday.

          "I would not bet on it," White said during the UFC 319 postfight news conference in Chicago. "If I had to make odds, it's a billion-to-1 odds I put Jon Jones on the White House card."

          Jones said he'd take those chances, as he responded to White's comments Monday on social media.

          White has cited Jones' unreliability as the reason to exclude him from the event. Jones is widely regarded as the greatest MMA fighter of all time, but he has been involved in legal issues outside of competition. The UFC stripped Jones of his title multiple times, including in 2015 after a felony conviction stemming from a hit-and-run in New Mexico. He faces new charges for allegedly leaving the scene of an accident this February.

          In 2016, the UFC made major changes to its landmark UFC 200 event in Las Vegas when Jones was flagged for a potential doping violation the week of the event. He was suspended for one year.

          Several big-name UFC fighters have expressed interest in the White House card, which White has said will take place July 4 to celebrate the 250th anniversary of United States independence. Conor McGregor, who hasn't fought since 2021, is among them. White has said that he won't start thinking about who will be on the card until next year, but that he does not anticipate adding Jones.

          Nevertheless, Jones has reentered the UFC's mandatory drug testing program and has said he will be ready for the July 4 date.