"Ducks are not hunters" - Fans erupt as Jon Jones pens cryptic post after teasing UFC White House return against Tom Aspinall

Jon Jones recently had fans buzzing again after reacting to a viral image of himself knocking out Tom Aspinall in front of a White House crowd. The artwork came after United States President Donald Trump floated the idea of hosting a UFC event on the White House lawn in 2026 to celebrate the country's 250th anniversary.

Jones has not officially announced a comeback, but he declared that he's back in the UFC drug testing pool. That decision alone reopened the door for a blockbuster return.

When Aspinall was promoted to undisputed champion after Jones retired last month, the chances of that fight seemed lost. Now, with one simple comment on the post, Jones has reignited talks of a return.

Jones recently took to X to drop another cryptic message, writing:

"It feels nice to be the hunter and not the hunted for once."

Check out Jon Jones' X post below:

Several fans took to X to react to Jones' message, writing:

"Ducks are not hunters, my dude."

"Fella, every fan you had for your entire career has lost respect for you. If by “hunted” you mean ducking a fight for 2 years, then sure."

"Must also feel good to be the duck."

"This is quite easily translated to, 'You’re not paying enough attention to me, so I’ll post something meaningless and vague.”

"You ducked both Francis [Ngannou] and Tom."

"Pretty sure Tom Aspinall is the hunter and you’re the duck flying away."

Check out some of the fan reactions below:

Fans react to Jon Jones' recent comments. [Screenshots courtesy: @JonnyBones on X]

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Daniel Cormier picks Jon Jones to beat Tom Aspinall despite retirement

Daniel Cormier believes Jon Jones would have beaten Tom Aspinall if they had fought for the undisputed UFC heavyweight title. While he criticized Jones for retiring before the matchup could happen, Cormier admitted that Aspinall lacks experience in the deep championship rounds.

He pointed to the physical and mental demands of a five-round fight, something Aspinall has yet to endure. Speaking in a recent episode of the Pound 4 Pound with Kamaru & Henry podcast, Cormier said:

“Gun to my head, I think Jon beats Tom. I would have said he’ll probably beat him right now. Because, guess why? Tom has never been pushed into those championship rounds. Say Ciryl Gane pushes [Aspinall] 25 minutes. If he beats Ciryl Gane, but he learns to go 25 minutes where, for the first time, you feel that [gasps for air], [and he’s] gotta get up off that stool after the third round…Tom hasn’t got off the stool for a third round. [Jones] needed to fight Tom now, when he doesn’t have that experience, especially as Jon Jones."

Check out Daniel Cormier's comments below (23:15):