One of the biggest stars in the UFC has been very vocal about his thoughts on fighter pay since the promotion kicked things off back in May.
The light heavyweight champion and current pound-for-pound number one fighter, Jon Jones, has been in a public spat with the promotion. Jones has said that he would sit out as long as it took to get paid what he wants.
With that line of thinking, many have wondered if this would prompt the UFC to strip Jon Jones of his title. However, Dana White said in an interview with Barstool that the promotion is not planning on that.
“The last time he said ‘I’m not fighting,’ he’s not fighting, so we’re feeling this thing out. When it’s time for him to fight, we’ll see,” White told Barstool. When asked about stripping him, White replied, “Not as of yet, no.”
The UFC & Jones current position
It is a very delicate situation between Jones and the UFC. Jones was very active staring in December of 2019. After all of the suspensions and issues, Jones fought and won four times over the course of 14 months.
After Francis Ngannou knocked out Jairzinho Rozenstruik in 20 seconds at UFC 249, Jones and Ngannou started angling for a fight. Generalities were spoken in terms of financial figures, and the UFC had no interest in bumping Jones’ pay.
White came out and said that Jones was requesting Deontay Wilder money to fight Ngannou. This is a claim that Jones quickly refuted.
Don’t be a fucking liar, my reputation has already taking enough hits. I don’t need this bullshit Dana. I never asked for Diante Wilder‘s numbers. And how about since Diante is making 30 million, we settle for half of that. Since you said I’m the goat and everything.
— BONY (@JonnyBones) May 29, 2020
All of this drama between Jones and White came back in late May/early June. Since then, it’s been very quiet on this front. White did say he believes that they will resolve the issue.
The UFC has been cranking out cards, and I believe that they have the rest of the year figured out. The rest of 2020 may not included Jones or Conor McGregor. White guaranteed McGregor wouldn’t fight and it doesn’t appear as if Jones will fight either.
Time will tell what’s going to happen in this situation. I still believe that they will get this resolved in the end. Not sure if Jones will return to the light heavyweight division or if he’ll move up, but rest assured, Jon Jones will fight again in the UFC someday.