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Brett OkamotoOct 25, 2025, 07:35 PM ET
- Brett Okamoto has reported on mixed martial arts and boxing at ESPN since 2010. He has covered all of the biggest events in combat sports during that time, including in-depth interviews and features with names such as Dana White, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Georges St-Pierre. He was also a producer on the 30 for 30 film: "Chuck and Tito," which looked back at the careers and rivalry of Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz. He lives in Las Vegas, and is an avid, below-average golfer in his spare time.
Jon Jones and Alex Pereira would like to fight each other during the planned UFC event in June at the White House.
Two of the UFC's biggest stars publicly called out each other Saturday in the immediate aftermath of the UFC heavyweight title fight between Tom Aspinall and Ciryl Gane. Jones is a former heavyweight champion who retired earlier this year rather than accept a fight against Aspinall, while Pereira is the light heavyweight champion with a list of potential contenders in his own weight class.
The UFC has been hesitant to book a fight between Jones and Pereira for those reasons, but with Saturday's title fight resulting in a historic no-contest due to an eye-poke, Jones and Pereira saw an opportunity to state their cases.
"Let's make the heavyweight division great again," Pereira wrote on Instagram.
"Alex, I'd be down to bring the highest skill level to the White House," Jones responded. "I appreciate the respect you showed, let's dance."
UFC CEO Dana White has repeatedly said that the promotion has not yet discussed specific bouts for the White House event, which President Donald Trump has said will happen June 14. White has said, however, that he does not trust Jones enough to allow him to headline the card, as Jones has a history of personal and legal issues that have impacted his availability to compete.
Jones (28-1) is widely considered the greatest UFC fighter of all time. He remains the youngest champion in UFC history, winning his first title at 23. He captured the heavyweight belt in 2023 and defended it once before retiring from MMA in 2025. Shortly after announcing his retirement, and making it clear he did not wish to face Aspinall, Jones said he would come out of retirement to fight at the White House event.
Pereira (13-3) is a two-weight champion in the UFC and kickboxing. He has several potential title challengers at 205 pounds, but would prefer to move to heavyweight in his next bout. Earlier this month, Pereira revealed that he had planned to call out Jones after his most recent fight at UFC 320 in Las Vegas, but refrained after the sudden death of Jones' older brother, retired NFL lineman Arthur Jones.
