Jon Jones Says Khabib Nurmagomedov Mustn’t Underestimate Conor McGregor Wrestling Performance
Conor McGregor is the richest UFC fighter ever. Remember his $100 million boxing spectacle against Floyd Mayweather Jr on August 26, 2017! Dana White even stated that Conor McGregor could be UFC part-owner as well. Jon Jones is also thrilled by The Notorious. He thanks Mystic Mac for inspiring him for the bigger matches. (via MMAMania.com)
“Conor McGregor has definitely inspired me to reach for bigger fights,” said Jones during a recent appearance on Allow Me To Interrupt. “The higher the risk, the higher the reward. That’s my plan, take a page out of his book. And start challenging myself against some pretty scary dudes.”
According to Jones, McGregor doesn’t have as good wrestling skills as Khabib Nurmagomedov. Yet, he says the Irishman’s wrestling mustn’t be underestimated by Khabib!
”I believe that Conor McGregor has wrestling,” said Jones. “I don’t think it’s at the level of Khabib. I believe that Khabib will get the majority of his takedowns that he goes for. Conor, he’s an athlete. He shouldn’t be underestimated.”
As well as you know, the majority of Conor’s fights were finished via left cross or right uppercut. Conor’s fight against Marcus Brimage at UFC On Fuel TV 9 on April 6, 2013, is a great example. Let’s then remember how he slammed Chad Mendes at UFC 189 on July 11, 2015. He knocked Featherweight champion Jose Aldo at UFC 194 on December 12, 2015, after only 13 seconds via left cross! Also, Conor won the Lightweight title by sending Eddie Alvarez to sleep via right uppercut at UFC 205 on November 12, 2016.
On the other side, Khabib is a cardio machine. The majority of his UFC victories came via unanimous decision. He can fight for five rounds with an ease. He dominated Al Iaquinta at UFC 223 on April 7, 2018. He did the same thing to Edson Barboza at UFC 219 on December 30, 2017.
Jon Jones says he doesn’t understand why Khabib doesn’t put more jiu-jitsu into his training sessions. Bones also noticed The Eagle lacks in boxing defense. For Bones, Khabib depends a lot on ground and pound. He takes his opponents down but doesn’t finish them.
”I think Khabib, his boxing defense isn’t the strongest. I don’t understand why he doesn’t work a lot of jiu-jitsu,” explained Jones. “If you can take down anybody, why not know how to finish them? He depends on ground-and-pound and he never finishes anyone with that. Khabib is a black belt wrestler. If he adds a black belt in jiu-jitsu to his recipe, he’d be extremely scary.”
Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor are slated for the main event of UFC 229 on October 6, 2018, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Who is your “Sin City showdown” favorite? Do you agree with Jon Jones? Can Conor McGregor stop Khabib’s ultimate weapon – a takedown?
