Dana White to Jon Jones – ‘He Can Fight This Summer or He Can Never Fight Again’

Published 05/17/2021, 6:00 AM EDT

Francis Ngannou wants to be an active champion. As a fighter, he has remained extremely active in the UFC. Hence, he wants to continue that when there is a bigger target on his back. ‘The Predator’ was set to fight Jon Jones in a mega-fight for the heavyweight strap. Unfortunately, as the UFC and Jones couldn’t find a middle ground, Ngannou will face a former rival instead.

Derrick Lewis, who was in attendance at UFC 262, sat down with the media and answered a few questions as well. He stated he would like to get a fight done with Francis Ngannou as soon as possible. However, the bout is not official yet.

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Will Jon Jones fight in 2021?

While speaking to the media, a reporter asked Dana White if a potential Jon Jones vs Francis Ngannou fight was done. He also requested clarification on what is next for Jones’ fighting career.

White said, “That’s up to Jon Jones. Whether he wants to fight or not. There’s fights available, they’re here. I am going to keep making fights every weekend doing fights. If Jon Jones wants to fight, he can, and if he doesn’t, he doesn’t have to. Nobody is going to force Jon Jones to fight.”

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#UFC president Dana White says "nobody is going to force Jon Jones to fight" after #UFC262:
"It's up to him."
Watch full video: https://t.co/NQMSzLsW82 pic.twitter.com/9G7XPuVIga
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) May 16, 2021

The UFC President continued, “He’s had a great run. He’s got an incredible legacy. I personally see him as the ‘GOAT’. Right now you got guys that are nipping at his heels like Usman and some other guys out there. You know it’s up to him. He can fight this summer or he can never fight again. I mean that’s up to him.”

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Derrick Lewis vs Francis Ngannou will most likely headline the PPV in August. If Jones were to come to terms with the UFC, he would fight the winner of that fight as he has stated no interest in fighting Stipe Miocic.

This means that Jon Jones’s debut at heavyweight could be towards the tail-end of this year. Fortunately for fans, ‘Bones’ recently shared on Twitter that he is meeting with some “awesome” attorneys and sports agents soon. He also added, “Feel like my professionalism is about to go up a notch.”

Do you think having the right agents and attorneys by his side will help Jon Jones broker a deal with the UFC? Let us know in the comments below!

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Written by:

Kevin Binoy is an MMA author at EssentiallySports. He earned a Bachelor's degree from Fergusson College and has been covering sports professionally for over two years. Besides working with the MMA writing team, Kevin is a core member of the organization's web stories team and is responsible for delivering engaging MMA web stories.

Dana White to Jon Jones – ‘He Can Fight This Summer or He Can Never Fight Again’

Will Jon Jones fight in 2021?

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