“I’ve decided that maybe I will not retire… I know we have options,” said Jon Jones after his UFC 309 win. He kept the hopes for a fight against Tom Aspinall alive, and fans were waiting for it. But the sudden announcement from Dana White in Baku last week really left a bad taste in the fans’ mouths. And guess what? One fan even took a jibe at Jones by comparing his legacy to the greats of two other sporting worlds.

LeBron James and Tom Brady are two of the most iconic American athletes in the country’s history. Both legends are greats of their own sport, the NBA and the NFL, respectively, and, leading one fan pointed fingers at Jon Jones and claimed that James and Brady would not have ended their careers when they were on the verge of a big match. Of course, the fan insinuated at the Tom Aspinall fight, as Jones did not live up to what he said after his last fight.

“I don’t think Tom Brady and Lebron argued about who they are going to play against and then retired,” the fan said. But guess what? Jon Jones did not seem to care too much about the comparisons with Tom Brady and LeBron James, as he claims to have a greater legacy than both of those legends “combined.” The former 2-weight UFC champion blatantly responded by bragging about having more championships to name.

On the other hand, Jon Jones also believes that neither the Lakers star nor the Buccaneers legend would have a problem with his decision to hang up his gloves after a career that spanned almost a couple of decades. “I have one more championships than both of those guys combined, even those two themselves would condone me hanging up the gloves,” the UFC legend wrote in a now-deleted X post.

On the other hand, Jon Jones has already cleared the air about his retirement, highlighting the fact that fans should never have known about it from the beginning. The former 2-weight champion has claimed that he had retired way before the recent announcement. Here’s what he had to say.

Jon Jones claims he retired at UFC 309

Jon Jones has retired before, but came back. However, this run was a bit different, as ‘Bones’ had a few objectives that he needed to complete. First of all, the heavyweight title, which he won after making quick work of Ciryl Gane. Then, to add a title defense to his name, he fought the arguably best heavyweight in UFC history, Stipe Miocic, whom he finished as well.

Hence, the mission was accomplished at UFC 309, and after that fight, he started living a post-fight career lifestyle, doing some traveling and engaging in endeavors outside the Octagon. “I was retired last November, and I’ve been working nonstop, I’m actually working harder now that I’m not fighting, but it’s so much fun,” Jon Jones wrote in another tweet. “No more sweating, just using my personality and giving fans all the love that I can. Sounds like a pretty good gig.” 

Well, Jon Jones appears to have no remorse regarding his retirement decision, even if some fans take issue with it. He’s beaten the best of the best, made his millions, and etched his name in UFC history. What has he left to do in Dana White‘s promotion? Maybe fighting Tom Aspinall? Well, some UFC legends have disagreed with that notion and backed Jones and his decision to bid farewell to the sport. Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.