UFC president, Dana White has provided a rather bleak update on the return of recently minted undisputed heavyweight champion, Jon Jones to the Octagon this summer – claiming the Endicott native has “disappeared” since headlining UFC 285 last month.
Snapping a three-year-plus Octagon hiatus back in March, Jones, a former two-time undisputed light heavyweight champion, headlined UFC 285 in a vacant heavyweight title outing against former interim division champion, Ciryl Gane.
Snatching the vacant division crown, former Jackson-Wink MMA staple, Jon Jones submitted the Frenchman with a dominant first round guillotine choke, minting himself as a two-weight champion under the banner of the UFC.
Linked with a return to headline UFC 290 during International Fight Week in July, Jones has welcomed a heavyweight title outing against former two-time division best, Stipe Miocic for the summer blockbuster.
Dana White provides bleak outlook on Jon Jones’ summer comeback
However, UFC boss, White has claimed Jones has gone radio silence on a return to the Octagon this summer since winning the heavyweight crown against Gane.
“Jon Jones came out, made quick work, and poof – disappeared,” Dana White told assembled media following UFC 287 over the weekend. “He is ready to fight – he wants Stipe (Miocic). So, we will get it figured out.”
Earlier this month, reports detailed how the promotion were working on booking a featherweight championship unification fight between champion, Alexander Volkanovski, and interim gold holder, Yair Rodríguez for UFC 290 during International Fight Week.
Himself sidelined since March 2021, Ohio native, Miocic suffered a second round knockout loss to two-time opponent, former undisputed heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou in the pair’s championship rematch at the UFC Apex facility.
In the days following his title win over Gane last month, Jones sent fans and followers into a state of worry, posting several cryptic tweets on his official Twitter account, before subsequently deleting the posts.