Overnight, Jon Jones went from a rebel to a company man. After years of stringing Tom Aspinall along, ‘Bones’ hung up his gloves with a single post on X. But the moment Dana White stood beside President Donald Trump to announce the White House card, Jones was suddenly back—once again angling for the infamous ‘Dana White privilege.’ However, unlike all the other times, this time, it just may be too late.

White has made it clear that Jon Jones cannot be trusted for an event on the scale of the White House card. Even with Alex Pereira open to the matchup, the UFC CEO has shown no interest in offering Jones another lifeline. Even longtime UFC color commentator Joe Rogan has thrown his support behind making the fight happen. Still, White remains unmoved—for one reason alone.

Dana White reveals why Jones vs. Alex Pereira won’t happen

Speaking to Dana White during a recent interview with Complex, Matt Welty pointed out Joe Rogan’s support for making the fight. “At 205?” White exclaimed enthusiastically. “Yeah, I mean, that would be fine, but can I count on Jon Jones? Can’t have Jon Jones doing something bad or pulling out of the f—king White House fight,” he added, laying bare the real reason behind Jones’ exclusion.

To be fair, Jones has only withdrawn from scheduled fights due to injury on two occasions throughout his career. The first came in August 2014, when he pulled out of a light heavyweight title defense against Daniel Cormier after suffering a leg injury in training. Jones underwent surgery, and the bout was rescheduled for UFC 182 in January 2015, where he went on to win by unanimous decision.

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The second instance occurred in October 2023, when Jones tore a pectoral tendon off the bone while preparing for his fight against Stipe Miocic at UFC 295. The injury required surgery and sidelined him for roughly eight months. The fight was ultimately postponed and took place at UFC 309 in November 2024, with Jones successfully defending his title via TKO.

However, injuries are only part of the story. Jones’ long history of legal troubles and one PED issue have collectively ie negatively impacted his career. In 2012, he was arrested for DUI after crashing his Bentley into a telephone pole in New Mexico. Three years later, in 2015, he faced felony hit-and-run charges after fleeing the scene of an accident that injured a pregnant woman.

His issues continued in 2020, when he was arrested for aggravated DWI and negligent firearm use, followed by a domestic violence charge in 2021. Most recently, in 2025, Jones faced misdemeanor charges for leaving the scene of an accident, some of which were later dismissed. Regardless, even Jon Jones appears to know that he ain’t getting on UFC White House card.

Jon Jones reveals Dana White is not letting the fight happen

White has revealed that the promotion will only start working on the card for UFC White House after the January 23 and January 24 UFC and Zuffa Boxing events. So, Jones, technically, has a few more days to convince Dana White he is a changed man.

But it appears he already knows what the decision from White is going to be. “Pereira wants to fight me, but I don’t think Dana White’s going to allow that to happen,” Jones told Red Corner MMA. “It will be interesting to see what Dana wants.”

If the fight is blocked, Jones may be forced to decide whether his short-lived comeback ends before it truly begins.

As the days go by, it looks like Jon Jones’ hopes to fight on the White House card will remain unfulfilled. But after what he did to Tom Aspinall, maybe he deserves to watch the event from the sidelines. What do you think?