{"id":805369,"date":"2026-07-17T04:28:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T04:28:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/805369\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T04:28:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T04:28:09","slug":"jon-jones-praises-conor-mcgregor-for-staying-positive-after-ufc-329","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/805369\/","title":{"rendered":"Jon Jones praises Conor McGregor for staying positive after UFC 329"},"content":{"rendered":"

July 16, 2026, 10:50 p.m. ET<\/p>\n

Jon Jones is pleased with how Conor McGregor is handling himself after a frustrating loss in his return fight.<\/p>\n

After being away from the octagon for five years, the return of McGregor (22-7 MMA, 10-5 UFC) officially lasted only 69 seconds<\/a> in the rematch against Max Holloway<\/a> in the UFC 329 main event. The fight was essentially over with the first explosive strike McGregor threw, in which he blew out his right knee.<\/p>\n

McGregor immediately left the octagon and appeared to be a broken man. Some celebrated his grief, given the pain he has caused to others<\/a> outside of the cage, while others sympathized, seeing a fighter who was once at the top of the game seemingly being at his lowest as an athlete. In the days that followed UFC 329, McGregor has posted positive messages, keeping God’s name invoked<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Jones, who says he is constantly working to become a better person after a long history of legal troubles of his own, is glad to see McGregor keeping his head high.<\/p>\n

“Conor has been publicly leaning on Christ,” Jones told Ring Magazine<\/a>. “I feel as if when you are trying to resist the world and walk that narrow path, I feel like one of the steps is God asking you, ‘How bad do you want it?’ When you publicly talk about your love for God, and then you turn around and get injured, it’d be really easy to go back to the bar and have this rage and this animosity \u2013 and so far, what I’m seeing from Conor is he’s still praising God.<\/p>\n

“That shows me a lot about his character. Because that’s what God’s gonna do, man. He’s going to strip you, he’s going to humiliate you. He can do so many different things just to see if you mean it when you say you love him. I’ve lost my family members, I’ve embarrassed myself, and every time something goes wrong, I always give grace back to God. So, that’s one of the ways I look at Conor’s story. It’s just like, man, can you hold true when the whole world is laughing at you? So far, he is holding true. So, that means a lot to see.”<\/p>\n

McGregor, 38, has not won a fight since January 2020, when he finished Donald Cerrone in just 40 seconds. He’s since lost three fights in a row, leaving the cage with severe injuries in his last two. He is currently awaiting test results to provide answers about his recovery from the most recent.<\/p>\n

The rematch that wasn’t against Holloway may or may not be McGregor’s last fight. Regardless of where he goes from here, Jones hopes McGregor continues to stay on a positive path and help others with his story.<\/p>\n

“I think Conor has already won,” Jones said. “He has an opportunity to change so many lives in so many different ways. I think he’s a really great example of just how humans can be so imperfect and so unique and special at the same time. I just hope he doesn’t give up. I hope that he continues to let his light shine and just draws closer to God.”<\/p>\n

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