Khabib Nurmagomedov believes Jon Jones is long past his prime as he considers MMA comeback

UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov has given his thoughts on the future of Jon Jones ahead of his potential comeback.

As we know, Jon Jones is technically retired from the sport of mixed martial arts. He made the decision a few weeks back, declining to defend his UFC heavyweight championship against interim champion Tom Aspinall. As a result of that, Tom has been promoted to the position of undisputed champion.

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While we all suspected that Jones may change his mind, it didn’t take nearly as long as most people thought. In the immediate aftermath of Dana White and Donald Trump announcing a UFC White House card, Jon made it crystal clear that he’s interested in competing on that card.

When asked about Jones in a recent interview, the aforementioned Khabib Nurmagomedov had some interesting thoughts on his current position.

Nurmagomedov’s view on Jones’ prime

“I mean, he’s like 38 now,” Nurmagomedov said when asked about Jones retiring on the Hustle Show.

“But, no, he’s been gone for a while. Let’s be honest. How many fights has he had in the last five years?

“One or two in the last five years. He’s been done for a while. Even those last [light heavyweight] fights – [Thiago] Santos and [Dominick] Reyes – they were controversial.

“You know, his prime was clearly behind him. Then he fought Ciryl Gane. I think they just gave him the money. That’s it.

“Everyone has their prime, and his was long past.”

“We’re not friends,” he clarified, before speaking about his respect for Jones as an athlete.

Nurmagomedov added: “It’s really hard to compare anyone to Jon Jones.

“As a fighter, I never had questions about him. He’s a great fighter. No one can deny that.

“Like we said earlier, achievements and numbers speak for themselves.”

Quotes via Bloody Elbow