Khabib Nurmagomedov and Jon Jones are both in the GOAT conversation. While ‘Bones’ is most people’s pick for the greatest mixed martial artist of all time, ‘The Eagle’, by sheer virtue of his dominance in the octagon is in contention, too. At the very least he is on Jones’ Mt Rushmore.

The UFC heavyweight champion in an interview last year, had said that Nurmagomedov was in his top five UFC fighters of all time, along with himself, Georges St-Pierre, Anderson Silva, and Jose Aldo. And reacting to this list, the Dagestani former champion, too had good things to say about Jones. However, he made it clear that they could never be friends for one reason- Daniel Cormier.

“There was never any disagreement with [Jon] Jones. He is a great fighter and it will be hard to compete with him. But my friend [Daniel] Cormier is in conflict and automatically he cannot be my friend. I am not friends with those whom my friends are not friends,” Khabib wrote on his Instagram Story.

‘DC’ and Jones, of course, have one of the most infamous rivalries in the sport of MMA and had two memorable clashes, both of which Cormier lost (one was later overturned to a no-contest after Jones tested positive for a banned substance). And while Cormier is now retired, he still doesn’t really like Jones. On the other hand, Cormier and Nurmagomedov were not just teammates at the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) gym, but are also very good friends. And being a loyal friend, ‘The Eagle’ doesn’t feel like he can ever be pals with Jones. Even if Jones has been nothing but profuse in his praise of Nurmagomedov.

Why Jon Jones has Khabib Nurmagomedov in his top five

On being asked why he holds Khabib Nurmagomedov in high regard, Jones had a long list of things he admired about ‘The Eagle’, including his business acumen, how he carries himself, and the kind of person he was. While the heavyweight champ didn’t say anything about Nurmagomedov’s dominance in the octagon, that is presumably the reason Jones has him in his top five.

“I love what Khabib represents. We’ve had our differences in the past. I’ve made some quotes about him. But there’s never really been a real beef. I love the way he carries himself as a Muslim. I love the way he represents his country. I love the businessman that he is. He just seems like a stand-up guy. He gives back to others. He’s a stand-up guy. He’s an admirable man. I appreciate his existence,” Jones said.

While  Jones and the Dagestani have never had any real bad blood between them, the ‘differences’ he is talking about seem to be a reference to ‘Bones’ saying he doesn’t consider Nurmagomedov the GOAT over him. And Jones isn’t alone in this assessment. After all, Dana White, too, agrees with Jones, once saying that he would “have liked to have seen Khabib do more.” 

But then again, some, such as ‘DC’ feel that Jones’ history of doping automatically disqualifies him from the GOAT debate since he was essentially a drug cheat. But then again, the GOAT debate is a subjective one and depends entirely upon what one’s criteria are. What are your thoughts on Khabib Nurmagomedov’s comments on Jon Jones?