Navajo
Stirling doesn't think he's on a collision course with his
training partners in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Stirling (10-0) is scheduled to face his biggest step up in
competition so far in Jan
Blachowicz at
UFC Belgrade on Aug. 1 in Serbia. Stirling accepted the fight
on less than three weeks' notice, after the former light
heavyweight champion's original opponent, Bogdan
Guskov, accepted another short-notice booking.

A win over Blachowicz moves the Kiwi closer to the title, which is
currently held by his teammate, Carlos
Ulberg (14-1). Despite former middleweight champion Robert
Whittaker also being in the mix at 205 pounds, Stirling doesn't
see himself fighting either one of his teammates.

Navajo Stirling discusses Carlos Ulberg, Robert Whittaker and
the UFC 205-pound title picture

Whittaker (28-9), who has been training at
City Kickboxing lately, enjoyed a successful move up to the
light heavyweight division, finishing Nikita
Krylov. Amidst the Australian committing to the 205-pound
division and Ulberg winning the title, Stirling has shut down all
talks of a potential matchup against either Whittaker or
Ulberg.

Stirling also believes Whittaker and Ulberg have the same stance on
fighting their teammates and claims he can avoid a collision with
them as he is much younger. Rather, the 28-year-old wants to help
Ulberg cement his title reign at light heavyweight.

“Rob and Carlos are the best training partners, best bunch of
blokes to be around,†Stirling told Full Send MMA. “I don't want to
fight either of them. I think we are all on the same page. I think
the difference between the boys and me is that I'm super young.
There's no rush for me as well. Carlos has still got a couple of
years to solidify himself and I can still focus on helping him do
that.â€

Navajo
Stirling shuts down any talk of potential fights with Carlos
Ulberg or Robert
Whittaker

“Rob and Carlos are the best. I don't want to fight either of them.
I think we are all on the same page. I'm still young enough to help
Carlos solidify himself as champion†pic.twitter.com/iL7hdYPCmG

— FULL SEND MMA (@full_send_mma)
July 27, 2026

Navajo
Stirling believes Khamzat
Chimaev is a one-dimensional fighter.

After Chimaev suffered the first loss of his professional career,
the hype surrounding the former
Ultimate Fighting Championship champion has dampened. Stirling
recently called him a “one-trick pony†and wants Chimaev to move up
to light heavyweight so they can fight.

Why Navajo Stirling Believes Khamzat Chimaev Isn’t a Complete
Fighter

While Stirling acknowledges that Chimaev would bring much attention
to the 205-pound division, the unbeaten Kiwi wants to expose how
“Borz†isn't a well-rounded fighter.

“I think he's a bit of a one-trick pony,†Stirling told Full Send
MMA. “I would love to fight him. I want to test my theory against
someone like that. I would love for some bigger names to come to
the division that could bring some hype.â€

Chimaev was undefeated and a massive betting favorite going into
his first middleweight title defense against Sean
Strickland at
UFC 328 this past May. However, he visibly gassed out after a
failed takedown attempt in the second round and completely
abandoned his wrestling thereafter.

Strickland then out-landed Chimaev on the feet en route to a
massive upset win via split decision. UFC CEO Dana
White later claimed that Chimaev had discussed a move up to
light heavyweight in the immediate aftermath of his first
professional loss. However, he has since been repeatedly calling
for a rematch against Strickland.

Meanwhile, Stirling has racked up five UFC wins, with two finishes,
since making his Octagon debut in 2024. He is now scheduled to
fight Jan
Blachowicz on less than three weeks' notice at
UFC Belgrade on Aug. 1 in Serbia.

Navajo
Stirling wants Khamzat
Chimaev to come up to light heavyweight

“I think he's a bit of a one trick pony. I would love to fight him,
I wanna test my theory against someone like that. I would love to
see bigger names in the division that could bring some hypeâ€
pic.twitter.com/L08xcGyEjX

— FULL SEND MMA (@full_send_mma)
July 27, 2026

Jon Jones still hears from fans who believe he used performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career.

Jones is considered by many to be the greatest MMA fighter of all time, but for some, there is an asterisk. “Bones†has been flagged for failed drug tests during the prime of his career. A planned UFC 200 rematch with Daniel Cormier was nixed after “Bones†popped for clomiphene and letrozole, which was blamed on a male sexual enhancement pill.

Jones' 2017 win over Cormier was changed to a no contest after he was popped for turinabol. Jones' name was later cleared due to the trace amount being found in a tainted dietary supplement.

Still, Jones has heard from fans who still accuse him of using steroids. During a chat with ALF Global, the former two-division champion responded to those who still think he cheated during his prizefighting run.

“I guess people will say, ‘Well, Jon took steroids.' Never took steroids,†Jones insisted. “It was a supplement found in my body. It was proven to come from a supplement company that I was using. It was a tainted supplement that I was using. The amount of this substance that was in my body was so small that it took very expensive scientists to even be able to find it, and the supplement that was found in my body has zero performance-enhancing effects. That's very well-documented, and for some reason, the fans, they just ignore all that.â€

While Jones' last bout took place back in Nov. 2024, he has been hinting at still having the itch to compete if the offer is right. “Bones’†last bout was a third-round TKO finish over Stipe Miocic to retain the UFC Heavyweight Championship. While Jones announced his retirement back in June 2025, he was trying to get a spot on the UFC Freedom 250 card, which ultimately didn't pan out.

What do you make of Jon Jones' latest response to those who believe he knowingly used performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career? Sound off in the comments below.