Jon Jones teases MMA return against Tom Aspinall at UFC White House card, fans react: "Stop bulls**tting"

Just weeks after announcing his retirement, Jon Jones shared a fan-made image on social media that displayed him in custom American flag shorts perched atop the cage, celebrating over a knocked-out Tom Aspinall. Jones added a short comment under the fan art post that left fans guessing.

Jones recently revealed that he has re-entered the drug testing pool and hinted at keeping “options open.” This news came in just as United States President Donald Trump announced plans for a UFC card at the White House in 2026, marking the 250th anniversary of the United States.

Fans quickly connected the dots. Aspinall, now the undisputed UFC heavyweight king after Jones retired, is the obvious matchup. UFC had teased this fight for months before Jones walked away.

Dana White said he did everything he could to make the fight happen. Now, it feels like the fight might be back on the table, since Jones commented "I like this" under the fan art post.

Check out the Instagram post and Jon Jones' comment below:

Jon Jones comments on a fan art of him fighting Tom Aspinall. [Screenshot courtesy: @acgraphixs on Instagram]

The post quickly drew a flood of reactions from fans, who wrote:

"The delusion in this edit is out of this world. The guy ran for dear life. Move on and get a grip."

"@jonnybones make it fu*king happen then bro. Stop bullshi*ting and letting people think you're a joke."

"Even if somehow he can win. There's zero chance it's by KO."

"Absolutely shameless. Tom would kill Jon."

"Jon Jones ducked Tom so bad he retired btw [by the way]."

"I’m as American as it gets and I think this is a wild delusion."

Check out some of the fan reactions below:

Fans react to Jon Jones' comments on fan art of him fighting Tom Aspinall. [Screenshot courtesy: @acgraphixs on Instagram]

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Daniel Cormier backs Jon Jones to beat Tom Aspinall in a hypothetical clash

Daniel Cormier has made a rare exception and weighed in on a fight that never happened. Speaking on a recent episode of the Pound 4 Pound with Kamaru & Henry podcast, Cormier said he believes Jon Jones would have beaten Tom Aspinall if their heavyweight showdown took place.

He pointed to Aspinall’s lack of experience in deep waters as the key factor. Aspinall has never gone beyond the second round in his professional career, while Jones has battled through five-round wars for years. 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):