"I've stopped anticipating him coming back" - Former UFC fighter taunts Jon Jones, says 'Bones' is "more retired" than he is

Jon Jones is the only fighter in the UFC's pound-for-pound rankings who hasn't fought in over two years.

Jones last featured in the UFC 247 main event in February 2020, where he defended his light heavyweight championship against Dominick Reyes. He has since vacated his belt and fallen out with UFC president Dana White over his pay.

Former UFC fighter Ben Askren was asked about his thoughts on Jones returning to the octagon in an interview with 'The Schmo'. Askren responded and claimed to be more active than 'Bones' despite being retired:

"Jon Jones is more retired than I am. I'm retired and I've been more active than Jon Jones. So, I don't know. Maybe he's going to fight again. Maybe he's not. I don't know. I've stopped anticipating him coming back, right. 'Cause it's been three years and four months or something now. That's a really long time. So, I guess, maybe we'll see him, maybe we won't. I have no idea."

With reports of a Henry Cejudo return surfacing, Askren weighed in on who fans might see in the octagon first:

"Cejudo, like, I thought he said, 'Hey, I'm coming back!' And he's in the USADA pool but then you didn't hear anything so, I'm like, 'Why didn't we hear anything more?' Surely, if he was actually in there training every day, we would hear a little bit more. So, I'll go with Henry, 'cause Jon hasn't fought in three-and-a-half years."

Watch Askren's full interview with 'The Schmo' below:

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Dana White reveals timeline for Jon Jones return

Although the two haven't seen eye-to-eye at times, Dana White undoubtedly recognizes Jon Jones' talent. Ahead of UFC 280, the UFC president offered a timeline for a potential return for the future Hall of Famer.

In an interview with BT Sport, White said:

"We're working on getting him back. Hopefully early next year or in the spring... Jon has been a difficult guy to manage and deal with over the years, but at the same time, I respect the talent, the brilliance. The guy is one of the greatest athletes of all time, and unfortunately, a lot of his greatness will be blurred by the outside octagon stuff that happened."

Watch Dana White's full interview with BT Sport below:

Meanwhile, Jones has continued his preparations and training along the lines of his intention to move up to heavyweight. The former champion has shared clips and pictures of his progress on social media, where he is looking bulkier than ever.

Check out Jon Jones' Instagram posts below: