Following last weekend's UFC 254 event, the promotion has published its latest pound-for-pound rankings.Newly-retired lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov tops the list after his win over Justin Gaethje on Fight Island - something that Jon Jones has a big issue with.Jones had occupied the number one position in the rankings until this latest update and "Bones" took to Twitter after the list was published to vent his frustration at being relegated to second place. "This is number one bullsh*t," stated Jones in his first post on the matter.The 33-year-old then went on to explain why he disagreed with the rankings so strongly in his next tweet - as he bashed the overall quality of Khabib's record."Unanimous decision over last minute replacement Al Iaquinta to become champion Conor McGregor is the only opponent he’s ever had that the general public actually knew. Catapulted my man to becoming the best ever, this is hilarious."It would be hard to argue that Jones does not have a point here. Despite the dominant nature of Khabib's unbeaten 29-0 record, it is only in his last few fights that he began to face truly notable opposition.
Meanwhile, Jones has compiled an MMA record of 26-1 (with 1 No Contest) across his career. Those 26 victories include wins over countless MMA notables, including Daniel Cormier, Alexander Gustafsson (twice), Lyoto Machida, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, Rashad Evans and Mauricio "Shogun" Rua - amongst others.
Aside from handily dealing with some of the legends of the sport, Jones has also faced some of the best up-and-coming light heavyweight fighters that UFC has had to offer in the last few years.
Even the one loss on Jones' record was marred in controversy. His sole defeat was via a highly disputed disqualification against Matt Hamill for use of illegal strikes all the way back in December 2009.
Many observers, including UFC president Dana White, believe that Jones was harshly treated in that fight - and should still be undefeated.
Whilst Khabib's record is undeniably impressive, it is only in his last few bouts (against Gaethje, Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor) that Khabib truly began to test himself opposite the best in his division.
Whether these victories are enough for Khabib to be deserving of a higher pound-for-pound billing than Jones is debatable, to say the least.
It is worth remembering, though, that Khabib is now retired - meaning that he is almost certain to be removed from UFC rankings in the very near future. Sentiment might well have played a part in the decision to award Khabib top spot in the latest pound-for-pound list, considering that he has just fought his last fight.
Jon Jones is justified in feeling slighted by his demotion. He is, however, likely to take his place back on top of the pound-for-pound rankings before too long.