"Even Muhammad Ali was absolutely hated" - Jon Jones puts himself alongside legends like Tom Brady and LeBron James while addressing growing backlash

In the face of mounting criticism following his retirement from mixed martial arts, Jon Jones has put himself alongside legendary athletes, including Muhammad Ali, LeBron James, and Tom Brady.

Jones' decision to hang up the gloves was announced by UFC CEO Dana White last weekend. White had previously stated that 'Bones' vs. Tom Aspinall will happen in 2025 and the 37-year-old had even accepted the deal. Now Jones has revealed that he decided to retire last November but was asked to reconsider his decision and give it more time.

Many fight fans are upset by the bout falling out, and some have retaliated against Jones. Others, meanwhile, are content because 'Bones' had a successful career with numerous honors and believes that retirement was the appropriate choice.

While replying to a fan on X, who advised Jones to ignore detractors, the former UFC champion mentioned how some of the greatest and most successful players in history across various sports have had haters:

"Tom Brady, LeBron James, you name them. Very rarely can you be really good at something and I have a bunch of people thinking how they would've done things differently. Even Muhammad Ali was absolutely hated by everyone at one point in his life. It comes with a territory. They hated Bruce Lee when he first came to America."

Check out Jon Jones' comments below:

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Former UFC champion thinks Jon Jones will come out of retirement

Former two-time UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya appeared on The Ariel Helwani Show after Jon Jones' retirement. Adesanya told Helwani that he believes Jones will come out of retirement once he has resolved legal issues that are keeping him occupied:

"He's coming back... I don't agree with the fact of holding up the division. Tom [Aspinall] defended the belt. That's a defense on his book. Let the division keep moving, and now it moves forward. But then, now this whole thing comes out because it happened in February or whatever. F*ck, that's why he retired. I think he'll go through this and then, again, he'll come back."

Adesanya added:

"I think he will fight Tom... It will even be bigger by the time he comes back because Tom would have had like two fights or three fights and then like built up his own legacy as well."

Check out Israel Adesanya's comments about Jon Jones below (24:14):