UFC World Reacts to Jon Jones' Unexpected Retirement

UFC World Reacts to Jon Jones' Unexpected Retirement originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

Former UFC heavyweight champion Jon "Bones" Jones officially retired from mixed martial arts on Saturday night, bringing an abrupt end to a Hall of Fame-caliber career.

Jones hangs up his gloves after spending nearly two decades in the MMA circuit and after becoming one of the youngest champions in UFC history.

UFC president Dana White first broke the news during the press conference immediately following UFC Baku on Saturday, and Jones followed shortly with an official announcement posting a long statement on his X account.

The news came with no prior warning from the fighter or the UFC, though Jones had not defended his heavyweight title since his win over Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 in November 2024.

Tom Aspinall is the new, reigning, and undisputed UFC heavyweight champion.

Today, I’m officially announcing my retirement from the UFC. This decision comes after a lot of reflection, and I want to take a moment to express my deepest gratitude for the journey I’ve experienced over the years.

From the first time I stepped into the Octagon, my goal was to…— Jonny Meat (@JonnyBones) June 22, 2025

Jones' inactivity, coupled with pressure from the promotion and interim champion Aspinall’s rise, had fueled speculation about his future in recent months.

That said, his unannounced and completely unexpected retirement caught everybody by surprise.

The 37-year-old Jones retires with a 28-1 record, and his lone loss came via disqualification all the way back in 2009.

Jones dominated the light heavyweight division before transitioning to heavyweight in 2023, where he claimed the vacant title with a submission victory over Ciryl Gane after a three-year layoff.

Many UFC fighters jumped on the news and shared their thoughts on social media in reaction to Jones' retirement, offering different views about the development.

“For you fans,” new heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall wrote on IG. “It’s time to get this heavyweight division going. An active undisputed champion.”

"Jon Jones retired and there isn’t anything massive put together for his announcement? Just a post fight 3 second clip of Dana annoying it….Seems like he’ll be back to me," Julian Marquez said.

"Congrats champ. You deserve that. Now, lets make the only fight who make sense! Aspinall vs Almeida for undisputed HW title of the world. Gane ducks you and me before, already fought for the belt and lost 2-times, and his last win was a robbery," Jailton Almeida posted.

Congrats Jon Jones. You the GOAT.— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) June 21, 2025

"Congrats Jon Jones. You the GOAT," Jake Paul wrote.

"Alex pereira will fight aspinal for the heavyweight title! Change my mind! 👈" said Renato Moicano.

"New era has begun 🏆" posted Charles Johnson.

New era has begun 🏆 https://t.co/DjQHUF2IiK— Charles "InnerG" Johnson (@innerGmma_ufc) June 21, 2025

"👀👀👀" Gilbert Burns posted without adding any words.

"Glad Jon Jones didn’t break Cain Velasquez HW title length as champion by not fighting. Glad MMA can move on from this chapter. It’s #TomTime @AspinallMMA," Josh Thomson commented.

Related: Tom Aspinall's First Words in Reaction to Jon Jones' Announcement

Related: Jon Jones' Major Retirement Decision Sparks Confusion

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 22, 2025, where it first appeared.