Khabib Nurmagomedov claims he cannot ‘Be friends’ with Jon Jones amid rivalry with teammate Daniel Cormier

Former undisputed lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov has claimed he cannot “be friends” with UFC champion, Jon Jones, given the Rochester native’s long-standing feud and rivalry with the Russian’s; close friend and teammate, Daniel Cormier in years gone by.

Nurmagomedov, a former undisputed lightweight champion and Hall of Fame inductee in the promotion, called time on his undefeated mixed martial arts career back in 2020, most recently successfully unifying the divisional crowns with an impressive second round triangle choke submission over Justin Gaethje in Abu Dhabi.

As for Jones, the former two-time light heavyweight champion turned heavyweight gold holder, is slated to make his return to the Octagon next month in the main event of UFC 309 in Madison Square Garden, taking on the returning ex-champion, Stipe Miocic in New York.

Khabib Nurmagomedov shuts down potential friendship with Jon Jones in the future

And sharing his thoughts on Jones’ ability as a fighter, Khabib Nurmagomedov shared his admiration for the former pound-for-pound number’s ability inside the Octagon, before revealing he could never value him as a “friend”, however.

“I have never had any disagreement with (Jon) Jones. He is a great fighter — as a fighter, and it will be hard to compete with him,” Khabib Nurmagomedov said in a post translated by Bloody Elbow. “But my friend (Daniel) Cormier is in conflict with him and automatically, he cannot be my friend. I am not friends with those whom my friends are not friends.”

Twice sharing the Octagon with Cormier during their respective stints at light heavyweight, Jones would land a unanimous decision win over the former two-weight champion in a heated UFC 182 main event, before a high-kick knockout in their rematch bout was chalked off in favor of an official ‘No Contest‘ following an anti-doping policy violation by Jones in his 2017 return to combat sports.