Craig Jones blames Khabib Nurmagomedov for creating beef between Sambo and BJJ, says he had to look out for 'thick beards' attacking him

Craig Jones, the BJJ coach of Alexander Volkanovski, recently stated that Khabib Nurmagomedov is to blame for the beef between Sambo and 'the gentle art'.

Sambo, a martial art originating in Russia, was made most famous in MMA by 'The Eagle'. But Brazilian jiu-jitsu's effectiveness in MMA cannot be denied, and Jones has joked on several occasions that Sambo pales in comparison to BJJ.

Ahead of Alexander Volkanovski's first fight with Islam Makhachev at UFC 284, Craig Jones stated that Sambo was not an effective grappling art.

The Australian has continued his campaign against Sambo ahead of Volkanovski's rematch with Makhachev at UFC 294 this weekend, even saying that a loss for the Dagestani could see the demise of Sambo altogether.

During a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Craig Jones was asked if he has endured any criticism from his comments about Sambo. He said this:

"I do for sure. I actually went to the media day [at UFC 294] today and I was looking for any thick beards coming to attack me. But I think they know it's all in good fun. They started it, Khabib said, 'If Sambo was easy it would be called jiu-jitsu.' So he started the jiu-jitsu-Sambo beef."

Watch the video below from 3:27:

Craig Jones is referring to the shirt worn by Khabib Nurmagomedov at the ceremonial weigh-ins for UFC on FX 7, hosted in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

'The Eagle' donned a shirt with the following written on the front:

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Craig Jones shares prediction for Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294

Islam Makhachev will now face Alexander Volkanovski in the main event of UFC 294 after Charles Oliveira suffered a cut above his eye, forcing him to withdraw from the clash.

Makhachev is facing Volkanovski in consecutive lightweight title fights after the Dagestani succesfully defended his title against 'The Great' at UFC 284 in February.

Volkanovski was defeated via unanimous decision, but he was able to compete with Makhachev's elite grappling far better than people expected, Craig Jones believes his compatriot could win via submission this weekend.

Jones was recently interviewed by Submission Radio, during which he said the following:

"So obviously Islam loves an arm-triangle, if he tries to pull any of that bulls**t he's going straight into a buggy choke. He loves to take the back from turtle, if he tries any of that s**t he's getting kneebarred. So I think wherever it goes, he's getting submitted."

Watch the video below from 4:50: