Jon Jones is down in California this week for the Super Bowl and spent some of his time getting routed in the Celebrity Flag Football Challenge on Thursday night. Jones recently revealed (unwillingly) that he had an arthritic hip so bad he was a candidate for a replacement, but followed that up saying it wouldn’t stop him from fighting at the White House.
But during an interview with Helen Yee leading into the ‘Celebrity Sweat’ flag football game, Jones sounded less certain he wanted to continue. Asked what a perfect 2026 would look like, Jones’ list did not include fighting.
“Oh, man, just [being] a happy guy. That’s it, man,” Jones replied. “Expect Jon Jones to continue to grow as a human being. Expect my best, you know, just the way that I give back to others and try to impact these younger fighters. And I think my best self is on its way. And that’s a person without fighting, and I’m excited to meet this guy, to forge this guy.”
Jones was asked if that meant he was ready to be done fighting.
“I think I could be done,” he said. “You know, I’m young enough to compete with with some of the best fighters in the world. I am healthy enough to compete with some of the best fighters in the world. But I’ve always been used to competing with the best in the world. And so … That’s a really high standard to uphold.”
“And so maybe it’s just about, you know, doing it right, and getting out in a really good time. You know?” Jones continued. “I don’t wanna be one of these fighters that wins some and loses some and can’t remember what his name is. I met a fighter a few years ago. He didn’t know what his birthday was. And that’s a lot of fighting.”
“So I’m far from that, and I don’t wanna know what that looks like. So now I’m here doing celebrity football.”
“I can’t catch, and I’m not very athletic,” Jones admitted. “My brothers were tremendous on this football field, but that’s really not my thing. So I’m just hoping that I represent myself well, the Jones last name well, and ultimately have a great time.”
Jon Jones has made it clear that he’s willing to walk away if he doesn’t get to fight on the big UFC White House card in June. After spending months pushing hard for an epic showdown with Alex Pereira, he’s now switching gears back to retirement mode. And really, how long should the GOAT be expected to beg for a mega-fight?
The ‘will he / won’t he’ shall continue until Dana White announces the White House lineup. Do you think we’ll see Jones on there? Or did this interview convince you that the book of “Bones” in MMA is closed?