When the idea of a UFC event at the White House was first announced by U.S. President Donald Trump, and later confirmed by UFC officials to media, fighters scrambled to get their name into the hat of potentially competing at such an event.
One of those fighters was Jon Jones, who two weeks earlier had just announced his retirement from the sport of MMA, relinquishing the UFC heavyweight title in the process. This brought about an unclimactic ending to the long standoff of negotiations between he and then-interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall, who was promoted to undisputed champion immediately as Jones' retirement was announced by UFC CEO and President Dana White.
Now, during his recent appearance on the Full Send Podcast, White confirmed that despite the retirement announcement, Jones is already back.
"He jumped back in the pool," White confirmed.
Dana White Says Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall Would Be 'Dream' White House Main Event, Suggests Jones And Conor McGregor Could Both Fight On Card
Among the various questions about what could happen in one year's time with the White House card -- including how it would be set up, what the main event could be, and how it would affect the UFC's yearly schedule -- questions have also arose about what this means for the fate (once again) of a Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall matchup.
Jones vs. Aspinall is one of the fresher matchups available for heavyweight -- a UFC division most fans and pundits have widely agreed is one of the weakest, if not the weakest, in the promotion. And while Aspinall vs. Gane is also a fresh matchup, most of the other ranked contenders Aspinall has taken out in the first round in previous outings.
It seems White agrees that Jones vs. Aspinall is still a possibility -- even going as far as to say he could see it being a main event for the White House event.
"My dream main event right now [for the White House card], would be Aspinall vs. Jones," White said.
Conor McGregor, who hasn't fought since 2021, also has heavily promoted himself as being available for the card, going as far as to make a pitch to White in a DM that has been screenshotted and shared.
When asked about the possibility of both men competing on the card, White was open to the idea, stating, "It's possible."