American fighter Jon Jones has confirmed in an interview that he will retire from UFC after his high-voltage fight against Stipe Miocic at the Madison Square Garden in November, later this year. That match is going to be his first defence of the UFC Heavyweight title.
Jones stated that “Be around for my family, be around for my kids. I want to be able to play with my kids, have a good head on my shoulders and have joints that work. So I can see it coming to an end really soon, and I’m happy with that. I’m really proud of my career”
The current Heavyweight Champion went on to say that the only match that would keep him in the sport would be a high-profile bout with Francis Ngannou, who relinquished the throne. The initial plan was to have Jones face Francis Ngannou, but the fight didn’t materialize as the Cameroonian-French fighter couldn’t come to terms with the UFC for a new contract.
While speaking to Fox Sports Australia, Jon Jones said, "That would be worth the risk, worth the money, all of it. I think a Francis (fight) would get me really excited to maybe keep going. Francis is a former champion, he’s pretty damn popular here in America and across the world. It would bring in a lot of money and for that, I would be willing to come back."
In 2009, Jones made his UFC debut against the late Stephan Bonnar, and two years later, he defeated Shogun Rua to become the youngest champion in company history. Jones has defeated some of the greatest light-heavyweight competitors of all time, including Daniel Cormier and Alexander Gustafsson, and his only loss was a contentious disqualification against Matt Hamill over 10 years ago. The American fighter has 11 successful title defences in his career.