Jon Jones will never headline another UFC event - Fans bring up Dana White's old comments after his recent stance on Francis Ngannou
Dana White claims that Francis Ngannou will never fight in the UFC again. However, fight fans believe White will backtrack on his words much like he has done for Jon Jones in the past.
Earlier this year, 'The Predator' walked away from the UFC after failed contract negotiations. During a recent media interaction at UFC 285 ceremonial weigh-ins, White claimed that the Cameroonian will never return to the promotion.
Dana White says Francis Ngannou will never be in the UFC again.
https://t.co/vfjpAaWVbt
Interestingly, MMA fans are not convinced by the 53-year-old's bold proclamation. Twitter user @RickStrom reacted to the news by sharing an old article about the UFC president making a similar statement about Jones.
@jedigoodman Just leaving this here. https://t.co/XV70qzFYvF
After 'Bones' popped for PEDs in 2016, which ultimately led to his UFC 200 main event with Daniel Cormier getting scrapped, Dana White vented on SiriusXM that he wouldn't let the American headline a card ever again:
"I don’t [trust him], no. I don’t. In my opinion, I would never take the risk of headlining a show with Jon Jones again. I’d put him on the card, but I wouldn’t headline with him until he consistently gets back on track... how many cards have fallen apart because Jon Jones gets in trouble for something? [Transcripts via MMA MANIA]"
Nevertheless, Jones has headlined multiple cards since then. In fact, he was the headliner for the recently concluded UFC 285. At the pay-per-view, 'Bones' became the heavyweight champion, defeating the No.1 contender Ciryl Gane.
Jon Jones becomes the first man to finish Ciryl Gane
Jon Jones made his heavyweight debut at UFC 285 and emerged victorious, submitting Ciryl Gane in the first round via a guillotine choke, thereby clinching the heavyweight title.
However, this is not the only achievement the New Yorker claimed during the event. He also became the first man to finish the Frenchman in his MMA career.
Watch Jones finish Gane below:
A LIVING LEGEND!
@JonnyBones just proved he’s the greatest of all time ☠️ #UFC285 https://t.co/39miHeDyP6
Gane's only other pro-MMA loss came via unanimous decision against former champion Francis Ngannou at UFC 270.
Jones is one of the most accomplished fighters in UFC history. The former light heavyweight champion has been a part of 16 title fights in his time with the promotion. In fact, Jones has had more title fights than non-title events in the UFC.