Jon ‘Bones’ Jones announced his retirement from the UFC on Saturday night by releasing a statement on his X account.

“Today, I’m officially announcing my retirement from the UFC. This decision comes after a lot of reflection, and I want to take a moment to express my deepest gratitude for the journey I’ve experienced over the years. From the first time I stepped into the Octagon, my goal was to push the boundaries of what was possible in this sport.

Becoming the youngest UFC champion in history, defending my title against some of the best fighters in the world, and sharing unforgettable moments with fans across the globe—these are memories I’ll cherish forever. I’ve faced incredible highs and some tough lows, but every challenge has taught me something valuable and made me stronger, both as a fighter and as a person.

I want to thank the UFC, Dana, Hunter, Lorenzo, God, my family, coaches, teammates, and all the fans who have stood by me through every chapter. Your unwavering support and belief in me have been my foundation.

To my fellow fighters, thank you for bringing out the best in me and for the respect we’ve shared inside and outside the cage. 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.” 

Dana White announced that Tom Aspinall has been elevated to the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion.

“I feel bad that Tom Aspinall lost all that time and money,” White said. “We’ll make it up to him… He’s been willing to fight him anywhere, at any time. He’s going to be a great heavyweight champion for us. I’m excited to work with him.”

The 37-year-old Jones (28-1-0-1 MMA, 22-1-0-1 UFC) has held up the heavyweight division for most of the last two years with his nonsense. He avoided former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou for most of 2020 and all of 2021 while sitting on the sidelines.

Jones claimed that time was used to bulk up and prepare for his heavyweight debut after his long reign in the 205-pound division. After Ngannou defended his strap by defeating Ciryl Gane via unanimous decision at UFC 270 on Jan. 22 of 2022, he was unable to reach a deal with the promotion on a new contract.

Jones won the vacant heavyweight title by submitting Gane just 124 seconds into their bout at UFC 285 on March 4 of 2023. He then insisted that his first title defense come against Stipe Miocic, the former heavyweight kingpin who hadn’t competed since losing the belt to Ngannou by second-round KO at UFC 260 on March 27 of 2021.

After Jones suffered a shoulder injury that pushed back his showdown with Miocic, Aspinall won the interim heavyweight title by starching Sergei Pavlovich with a 69-second KO at UFC 295 on Nov. 11 of 2023. Aspinall then defended his interim belt by destroying Curtis Blaydes with a 60-second KO at UFC 304 last July.

Jones finally returned to the Octagon last November at UFC 309. By that point, Miocic was 42 and hadn’t fought in 44 months. Jones defeated Miocic via third-round KO (spinning back kick and punches).

He’s spent the last seven months ducking Aspinall, claiming that a fight with Aspinall “didn’t excite him.”

Huh? Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) isn’t just the interim champ, but he’s defended that interim belt. The 32-year-old Manchester native is 8-1 in the UFC with seven first-round finishes. No one has lasted more than six minutes and nine seconds with him in the Octagon.

Aspinall’s lone blemish on his UFC resume came in a TKO loss to Blaydes 15 seconds into their bout at UFC London in 2022 when he blew his knee out throwing a leg kick.

White has said multiple times that Jones vs. Aspinall would be the biggest fight in UFC history. Many felt the same about a Jones-Ngannou bout a few years ago. With his cut of the pay-per-view buys, Jones is easily turning down more than $10 million to not fight Aspinall.

The guess here is that Gane will get the first shot at Aspinall. The French kickboxer will become the No. 1 contender when this week’s new rankings come out (he’s currently #2 but will move up with Jones’s departure and Aspinall’s elevation). However, considering Gane’s 0-2 record in title fights (actually 1-2 if you count his win over Derrick Lewis to win the interim strap at UFC 265), I wouldn’t mind if sixth-ranked Jailton Almedia gets the nod to face Aspinall.

Almeida owns a 7-1 record in eight heavyweight fights in the UFC and presents a powerful ground game with strong submission skills.

As for Jones, there’s no denying his greatness. He became the youngest champion in UFC history when he mauled Shogun Rua to win the light heavyweight belt at UFC 128 in March of 2011. He cleared out the division by beating former champs like Rampage Jackson, Lyoto Machida and Rashad Evans.

Jones rallied to win an epic battle over Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 165 and beat the Swede again in a rematch five years later. He prevailed in two fights with his arch-rival Daniel Cormier, although one was later ruled a no-contest due to a failed drug test by Jones.

But with every remarkable accomplishment Jones achieved, he tarnished his reputation and his name with egregious behavior. There were arrests, failed drug tests for cocaine and steroids and the incident in Las Vegas when his long-time fiancée, Jessie Moses, was found in her hotel room with blood on her face and her clothes.

Jones and Moses’ daughter had left the room and alerted security that her mother was injured at Caesars Palace. Police officers arrested Jones trying to flee the scene. Footage was later released by law enforcement showing Jones ramming his own head into a police car.

There was the time he wrapped his Bentley around a telephone pole and was charged with a DUI. There was the incident in 2015 in Albuquerque when he ran a red light early on a Sunday morning (it was late Saturday to Jones, though) and hit another car driven by a pregnant woman, who sustained a broken arm.

Jones initially fled the scene on foot, but he got to the top of a hill and realized that he had left cash and drugs behind in his vehicle. An off-duty cop witnessed him sprinting back to his vehicle and then running off again with cash in his hand.

Jones hid out for two days before surrendering to authorities. He was fortunate to avoid jail time by accepting a plea deal, but the UFC stripped him of his belt.

And of course, there was the UFC 200 debacle. The promotion has made a big deal of its UFC 100, UFC 200 and UFC 300 shows, stacking those cards with nothing but must-see scraps.

In 2016, the rivalry between Jones and Cormier was the most heated in all of combat sports. They had famously brawled in a hotel at a media event ahead of their first bout at UFC 182 in January of 2015. Jones won that fight via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46).

But three days before the rematch in the UFC 200 main event, USADA announced that Jones had tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. The promotion was left scrambling for a new main event that was eventually given to women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate, who lost her belt to Amanda Nunes via first-round submission.

Anderson Silva agreed to take on Cormier on 24 hours of notice, losing a three-round UD.

Jones is even back in trouble this month. The Albuquerque Journal reported Saturday that he’s due in court on Tuesday for a bond arraignment.

According to the Journal, a police officer investigating a traffic crash on Feb. 21 found a woman in the passenger seat of a car “exhibiting signs of significant intoxication and lacking clothing from the waist down.”

The woman informed the officer that Jones had been the driver, but he had left the scene on foot. The woman called Jones, and a police service aide got on the phone with him and reported that the man “appeared to be heavily intoxicated and made statements implying his capacity to employ lethal force through third parties” against the aide.

As other officers arrived on the scene, one officer talked to the man on the phone. The man never acknowledged that he was Jones after being asked that direct question, but he made “allusions to violence.”

More than 13 years after wrecking his Bentley and being charged with DUI, Jones still can’t stay out of trouble with the law. He’ll continue to play the religion card with his words whether in front of a microphone or on his keyboard with posts to his X account.

Jones often talks about how many lessons he’s learned and how proud he is of being a family man. But then the public will find out about blood on his fiancée’s face and clothes, or about a drunk woman in a wrecked car lacking clothing from the waist down.

Is this retirement real? It’s a fair question. Jones was tweeting last week about the possibility of a matchup with Ngannou.

But White shot down the notion off Ngannou returning to the UFC last night, and there’s no way the promotion would allow them to fight for another company. Jones remains under contract to the UFC.

I don’t see Aspinall losing anytime soon but if he does, don’t be surprised if Jones comes out of retirement. Jones has made millions of dollars through the years, but he’s cost himself at least as much as he’s made.

Before the hit-and-run incident, he had endorsement deals with Nike, Gatorade and lots of other sponsors. Those companies got out of the Jon Jones business a long time ago.

I’m sure he still has millions in the bank, but the guess here is Jones will come back at some point to pocket more money. He has his habits, and they all involve spending lots of greenbacks.

Is he the GOAT of MMA based on his accomplishments inside the Octagon? No doubt about it.

But he’s also the guy that ducked into retirement just to avoid facing the up-and-coming star. Jones can attempt to rationalize that however he wants, but there’s nothing he can do to change that reality.

As much as he’ll be remembered for all the assbeatings he dealt out inside the Octagon, he’ll be equally remembered for refusing to fight Aspinall. And to a lesser extent, he’ll also be known for dodging Ngannou, too.

Jones thrilled fight fans from 2008 to 2024 with his spectacular performances inside the cage, but he consistently disappointed them with his behavior outside of it. And his career – if it’s indeed over – ends in immense disappointment with fans being denied the scrap they’ve been craving since early in 2023.

Aspinall released a statement last night on his social-media accounts.

“For you fans,” Aspinall wrote. “It’s time to get this heavyweight division going. An active undisputed champion.”

As always, the show goes on.