This story has been updated.
UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones is retiring.
During a press conference on Saturday after UFC Baku, Dana White said Jones, 37, contacted UFC on Friday night to say he was retired. Jones later posted on X to confirm the news and give thanks.
“Jon Jones contacted us last night and is retired. Jon Jones is officially retired, Tom Aspinall is the heavyweight champion of the UFC,” White said.
“As I close this chapter of my life, I look forward to new opportunities and challenges ahead. MMA will always be a part of who I am, and I’m excited to see how I can continue to contribute to the sport and inspire others in new ways. Thank you all for being part of this incredible journey with me. The best is yet to come,” Jones wrote as part of his goodbye.
Jones had been heavyweight champion since March 4, 2023, defeating Cyril Gane. When Jones was unable to defend the title, Aspinall defeated Curtis Blaydes on July 27, 2024, to win the interim title. Despite there being an interim champion, Jones successfully defended the actual heavyweight title against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 which will serve as his final MMA match unless he returns.
A match between Jones and Aspinall had been in the talking stages following Jones’ last title defense, but the unification bout was never officially announced, leaving the title in a state of flux for months.
Jones began fighting in 2008 and over his career established himself as one of the most dominant fighters in history, amassing a 28-1-1 record, his only loss being a questionable disqualification over Matt Hamill. He won the UFC light heavyweight title twice and the interim title once, losing them each time due to drug and behavior issues.
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A few hours after the news broke, a new report from the Albuquerque Journal revealed there is a criminal summons against Jones with a misdemeanor charge of leaving the scene of an accident stemming from an incident on February 21st. The summons was filed this past Tuesday and he has been called to appear in court on July 24th.
An Albuquerque police officer was investigating a crash when she saw a woman in the car “exhibiting signs of significant intoxication and lacking clothing from the waste down.” The woman said Jones was the driver and when the officer called Jones, he “appeared to be heavily intoxicated and made statements implying his capacity to employ lethal force through third parties.”
The officer requested backup and that person also reported similar threats of violence were made.
Several days later, Jones was interviewed in person and said the woman left his house intoxicated earlier in the day and called him after getting in the accident. He then said the officer he spoke with used “unprofessional language” which made him think it wasn’t legit.
The woman later told the police she drank alcohol and took mushrooms at Jones’ house, and after changing her clothes at her house, the next thing she remembered was being at the scene of an accident. She said Jones was the last person she remembered driving the car.
According to the report, Jones called the woman’s phone 13 times from the time of the crash until 11:34 AM the next morning in addition to text messages.
