Text messages between UFC President Dana White and then-UFC Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta, recently unsealed as part of an ongoing UFC antitrust lawsuit, reveal their frustrations with fighter Jon Jones over contract negotiations and his choice of opponents, providing insight into the UFC’s negotiating tactics that are now under legal scrutiny.
Dana White was at his wit’s end with Jon Jones. He vented his frustrations to Lorenzo Fertitta.
The date? May 24, 2014. The UFC was trying to set up a rematch between Jones and Alexander Gustafsson. The previous encounter, seven months back at UFC 165, had seen Gustafsson push the then-light heavyweight champ to the brink.
But there was a snag. Jones wanted to fight Daniel Cormier next, not Gustafsson. Contract extension talks had hit a wall over this detail. Jones was refusing to sign.
White was exasperated. He texted Fertitta, then-UFC Chairman, asking, “What’s up with Jones? Is he still being a scumbag?” This text was recently revealed as part of the UFC antitrust lawsuit. (No comments from Jones or UFC reps yet.)
Fertitta’s response? “Still a douche, but we’re inching closer. No movement on money, but sent the ultimatum letter.”
White’s reply was curt. “Awesome. F*** that punk, Lorenzo. He needs to know we don’t need him, or he’ll screw us over even more.”
Jones and the UFC had seen their share of rocky moments. The most significant was his refusal to take a short-notice title defense against Chael Sonnen at UFC 151. White had publicly lambasted Jones and his coaching team, even declaring, “UFC 151 will be remembered as the event Jon Jones and Greg Jackson murdered.” Despite this, Jones had bounced back, dominating Glover Teixeira at UFC 172.
With five fights left on Jones’ contract, White and Fertitta were on a mission. They wanted to secure the champ for a longer duration. In doing so, they inadvertently gave a glimpse into negotiation tactics now under scrutiny in a court battle. The question? Did they break the law by locking fighters into long-term contracts, thus stifling competition in the elite MMA fighters market? The plaintiffs in the UFC antitrust suit claim such contracts were part of an illegal scheme to suppress fighter salaries. They’re seeking damages from the UFC that could exceed $1 billion. The trial is set for April.
Jones and the UFC were still a year away from a bigger stress test of their partnership. A hit-and-run accident involving Jones left a pregnant woman with a broken arm and Jones facing jail time. But even then, the future Hall of Famer was a thorn in White’s side.
In a legal exchange, White reminded plaintiffs’ lawyer Michael Dell’Angelo that Jones wasn’t always a model citizen.
Dell’Angelo asked White, “So you wanted Mr. Fertitta to let Mr. Jones know that the UFC didn’t need him?”
White’s response was a simple, “Yeah.”
“And be a scumbag in negotiations?” Dell’Angelo added.
White denied this. “No. Do you know Jon Jones’ history? Just to be a scumbag in life. …. I mean, you could get pretty much every guy who works for me to testify that, yes, I was not happy with Jon Jones’ life choices.”
Jones later sat out for more than three years, from February 2020 to March 2023. This was due to another contract dispute with the UFC over his potential pay for a superfight with then-UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou. White publicly blasted Jones again, alleging he asked for an “obscene” amount of money — $30 million, the same as boxing champion Deontay Wilder was paid for a bout with Tyson Fury — to take the fight. White also hinted that Jones didn’t really want to face Ngannou, suggesting he was scared of the Cameroonian fighter. Jones dismissed White’s money claims as a “lie” and “bulls***,” and he scoffed at the idea of being afraid to take the fight.
Ngannou defended Jones’ request for more compensation.
“I think it makes sense,” Ngannou told TMZ. “I think for a mega-fight everyone would like to have mega-pay, [same] as mine. I want that fight. I would like to have good pay, and every other fighter out there would like that, so there’s nothing irrational in this.”
After Ngannou declined to sign a new long-term deal and became a free agent, the UFC stripped him of the title. White did an about-face on Jones, who’d just signed a new long-term deal that included a fight with Ciryl Gane for the vacant heavyweight belt. White insinuated Ngannou didn’t want to take the fight, looking for “lesser opponents” that would pay bigger purses.
Jones joined White in taking shots at Ngannou. The most direct of which came after the ex-champ congratulated him on dispatching Gane and signed off calling himself “the heavyweight king.”
“I love that quote,” Jones said. “I love it. All that muscle, with a big ass p****. Excuse me. I’m so sorry.”