{"id":131,"date":"2026-07-02T05:04:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T05:04:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/?p=131"},"modified":"2026-07-02T05:04:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T05:04:08","slug":"jon-jones-ilia-topuria-ufc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/2026\/07\/02\/jon-jones-ilia-topuria-ufc\/","title":{"rendered":"Jon Jones Explains How Ilia Topuria and Khamzat Chimaev Can Bounce Back From First Career Losses\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2026 has been the year of UFC underdogs. Two of the sport&#8217;s most dominant champions in recent memory, Ilia Topuria and Khamzat Chimaev, both lost their undefeated records and their titles to massive underdogs. Sean Strickland edged Chimaev in a razor-close split decision (48-47, 48-47, 47-48) at UFC 328. However, the bigger <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/2026\/06\/25\/ilia-topurias-trainer-offers-encouraging-health-update-hints-at-december-2026-ufc-comeback\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">shock came at UFC Freedom 250<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, where Justin Gaethje dismantled Topuria in front of the White House crowd.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gaethje systematically broke down the Spaniard over four rounds, inflicting so much damage that Topuria was unable to continue and retired on his stool before the fifth round. Defeats of that magnitude often leave lasting mental scars in addition to the physical punishment, and Jon Jones believes the key to bouncing back lies in how fighters respond.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udde3\ufe0f Khamzat Chimaev reacts to Ilia Topuria\u2019s defeat Justin Gaethje at <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/hashtag\/UFC328?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#UFC328<\/a>:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThose who rejoice at the defeats of others will never see greatness in this sport.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Chimaev and Topuria both lost their undefeated records, as well as their championships in the past month. \ud83d\udc51 <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/v1IXC5gcCR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/v1IXC5gcCR<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 MMA Orbit (@mma_orbit) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/mma_orbit\/status\/2066437952977211456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">June 15, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><strong>ALSO READ:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/2026\/07\/01\/daniel-cormier-ufc-226\/#google_vignette\" target=\"_self\">Daniel Cormier Details How WWE Prevented His Dream UFC Bout With Brock Lesnar<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speaking to <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=TGlbMsblMoU\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Red Corner MMA<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in an exclusive interview filmed before the recent IBA Bare Knuckle 5 event in Moscow, the former two-division champion offered separate advice for Topuria and Chimaev.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For the Spaniard, Jones said, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIlia\u2019s going to be in a good position. He has faith. He has a strong team, and that\u2019s a lot of what it takes. He has a work ethic. I think he\u2019s honest with himself. Ilia and I have the same agent, and we were talking about him earlier today.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He added, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat I heard was that he\u2019s humble, that he\u2019s honest. He realized that he just didn\u2019t perform well. And that\u2019s the number one step of getting back into the [Octagon] in a healthy way. It\u2019s the guys who make excuses \u2013 it\u2019s hard to come back and win that rematch. Honesty with yourself is the key to MMA, and knowing exactly who you are, what you\u2019ve done, and what you haven\u2019t done. You can\u2019t lie once you get in that cage.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8216;Bones&#8217; also shared words of encouragement for Chimaev, admitting he was surprised by the <\/span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=s3mOkh_k-Vw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">outcome of UFC 328<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> while pointing to a pivotal moment that changed the fight. He said, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBig fan of Khamzat. It was hard to see him lose. I was really surprised by that fight. I think when he got taken down, I think that was the main shift. When he was down and on his back, I feel like that was the main shift. He\u2019s not used to being in that position.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jones further explained, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHe\u2019s usually the dominant one. And I think being down and on his back, somewhere in his mind, it took him out of the fight. If I was Khamzat, I\u2019d work on my weaknesses. I\u2019d switch up your endurance routine to something different and spend more time on your back. That way in the future \u2013 you\u2019re just so comfortable being there\u2026you can throw up some submissions.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He then emphasized that while Chimaev is already well-rounded on the feet, his biggest area for improvement lies in becoming more comfortable fighting off his back. Jones added, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cKhamzat is a great kicker, boxer, and wrestler, especially when he puts you in that body lock. But we don\u2019t really see him on his back very often, so I\u2019d go back to the drawing board and be comfortable on your back with a strong Jiu-Jitsu game and mainly focus on the mindset.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Jon Jones gave some advice to Khamzat Chimaev and Ilia Topuria after they both experienced their first career losses recently:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat I heard is that [Ilia] is humble, he\u2019s honest, he realizes that he just didn\u2019t perform well. That\u2019s the #1 step of getting back into the ring in a\u2026 <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/7Hm52n074f\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/7Hm52n074f<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ChampRDS\/status\/2072436742649442415?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">July 1, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jones concluded with candid advice on how fighters should approach setbacks, stressing that losses can reshape a competitor&#8217;s mindset but also serve as the catalyst for growth when handled the right way. As for what&#8217;s next, Chimaev has already <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/2026\/06\/29\/khamzat-chimaev-ufc-rematch\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">called for an immediate rematch<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with Sean Strickland.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Topuria&#8217;s path back to the title, however, appears less straightforward, with Justin Gaethje having already dismissed the possibility of an immediate rematch. Instead, the former champion may need to earn another shot by facing a top contender such as Arman Tsarukyan or Paddy Pimblett. Whether the once-undefeated duo can reclaim championship gold in 2027 now remains one of the UFC&#8217;s biggest storylines.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>2026 has been the year of UFC underdogs. Two of the sport&#8217;s most dominant champions in recent memory, Ilia Topuria and Khamzat Chimaev, both lost their undefeated records and their titles to massive underdogs. Sean Strickland edged Chimaev in a razor-close split decision (48-47, 48-47, 47-48) at UFC 328. However, the bigger shock came at [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5886,"featured_media":61,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[29,36,39],"class_list":["post-131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ufc","tag-ilia-topuria","tag-jon-jones","tag-khamzat-chimaev"],"modified_by":"Kshitiz Kumar Singh","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5886"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=131"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":133,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131\/revisions\/133"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=131"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=131"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/mma\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=131"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}