Jon Jones Feels He Can Call Islam Makhachev 'Up and Coming'

⚡️Jon Jones comments on calling Islam Makhchev "still young to this sport":

"I feel like the comment that I made upset a lot of Islam's fans, but really what I was trying to do is to translate Nate for the Russians...

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But at the same time... I can say that. Not many people can… pic.twitter.com/LEkk7OqMEq

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) May 20, 2025

Jon Jones isn’t changing his stance on Islam Makhachev. 

Jones is currently filming for a Russian MMA reality show opposite Nate Diaz in Thailand. During the show's filming, “Bones” referred to current UFC pound-for-pound king Islam Makhachev as someone who is still “young to the sport.” This didn’t go over well with Makhachev’s fans, leading to a clarification from Jones.

Jones claims he wasn’t trying to undermine Makhachev but was only trying to translate Diaz, whose accent is tough to understand for non-Americans. However, the heavyweight champ didn’t entirely change his stance on Makhachev. Jones believes his own legacy, if anyone’s, warrants him the status to consider Makhachev an up-and-comer in the sport.  

“I feel like the comment I made, made a lot of people upset, a lot of Islam fans upset,” Jones said. “But really what I was trying to do, was I was trying to translate for Nate to the Russians. Nate speaks in a very laid back way, he speaks with a lot of slang. And if you’re not American, it may be hard to understand what he was saying. So I was really just trying to translate for Diaz. But at the same time, me saying that Islam is an up-and-coming fighter, when it’s coming from me, I can say that. Not many people can say that, I can.” 

Jones began his career at light heavyweight, where he set the UFC record for most title defenses. He then returned after a three-year hiatus in 2023 and made quick work of Ciryl Gane to win the vacant heavyweight championship. However, he has since defended his title only once against Stipe Miocic and stalled the division. Jones has been slow to accept a fight against interim champ Tom Aspinall, who has defended his interim strap in the meantime. Jones claims he has made his plans clear to the UFC and doesn’t know why they aren’t making it public. 

Meanwhile, Makhachev is undefeated in 15 outings, which includes four lightweight title defences. The Dagestani star has now moved up to welterweight to challenge Jack Della Maddalena for the title at a future event.