‘Khabib Never Cheated Using Steroids’: UFC Fans React as Ilia Topuria Excludes Khabib From ‘GOAT’ List and Hails Jon Jones

How does Khabib Nurmagomedov with his impeccable 29-0 record in professional MMA rate against UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones in the GOAT debate? Not very high, according to featherweight champion Ilia Topuria. While he claims to respect Khabib, the Spaniard believes in the records speaking for themselves.

Khabib’s 29-0 makes a fairly compelling case for his legacy but how many of these fights were in the UFC and more importantly, how many of them were against world-class opponents? The only fighters who would possibly qualify as world-class in Khabib’s lost of opponents would be Conor McGregor, Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, and perhaps Rafael Dos Anjos.

Topuria’s argument is of a similar nature. The UFC featherweight champion asserts that Jones has been in the UFC for one and a half decades and in that time he’s had more title defenses than Khabib has had fights.

On an episode of the Full Send podcast, he made his case and said, “All the respect to all the champions, but for example, Khabib, he has how many? 14-15 fights in the UFC. All the respect to all the champions, but for example, Khabib, has how many? 14-15 fights in the UFC“.

Khabib has actually had a total of 12 fights in the UFC and Jones has had 13 title defenses. So, even if Topuria’s numbers are a little off, he does make a lot of sense.

Since becoming the youngest UFC world champion in 2011 at UFC 128, Jones has only been in title fights and has won every single one of them. But of course, the case against Jones’ greatness is also of his own making.

From assault charges to multiple doping violations, Jones hasn’t been an endearing figure or even a revered one. Fans were happy to remind each other about his multiple issues, like doping violations. This man claimed Jones and Khabib couldn’t be compared because “Khabib never cheated using steroids“.

Others questioned Khabib’s list of opponents or as the the MMA community online calls them, ‘cans’. This man sarcastically added, “Who needs steroids when you’re fighting mostly bums? Over half his fights were against legitimate nobodies”.  This man went into the details of their careers and prompted, “Khabib never lost a round. Jon Jones got beat up by Gustafson and lost to Reyes. Barely beat one-legged Santos. There’s no comparison, really. Khabib > Jones“.

It should be noted that Gustafsson was a legitimate world-class striker, who Jones thoroughly dominated in the rematch. The Reyes point, however, has a leg to stand on, since it was a really close fight that many thought shouldn’t have gone in Jones’ favor.

Meanwhile, in response to the argument about Khabib never losing, one fan pointed out that “If Khabib fought as long as Jones has he would have had some close fights; and possibly even losses. Lol never lost a round did he ever stand up with anyone for a whole round.”

Unfortunately, the debate about who the GOAT is between these two will never come to a real conclusion. So the best way to look at it is how this gentleman did.

Well, if you think about it, Georges St-Pierre is the best choice. He had 14 title fights in the UFC, never got suspended for doping, unlike Jones, and was a well-rounded fighter, unlike Khabib.

And as if to make a point, GSP retired from the sport as the welterweight champion in 2013, only to return in 2017 for one last fight, where he fought for the UFC middleweight title against Michael Bisping and won, before retiring again! If that isn’t GOAT stuff, we don’t know what is!