UFC’s CEO has shifted his own pick over the years, but now he’s certain: Jon Jones is the best-ever mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter.
UFC CEO, Dana White, has anointed reigning Heavyweight champion — and former dominant 205-pound roost-ruler, Jon Jones — as the Greatest of all Time (G.O.A.T.) debate … and it’s not even close.
Arguments over who is the mixed martial arts (MMA) GOAT get pretty heated. That’s just how it goes when you have guys like Georges St-Pierre, Anderson Silva, Jon Jones and Khabib Nurmagomedov to choose from.
But, White has settled on his GOAT, and unsurprisingly, it’s “Bones,” the fighter he’s still making money off of.
“Jon Jones — there’s no debate,” White said on Lex Fridman’s podcast. “Nobody can debate who’s the greatest of all time. It’s absolutely positively Jon Jones. He’s never lost. He’s never been beaten in the Octagon ever.
“He destroyed everybody at Light Heavyweight, which at the time was the toughest weight class in the company and the sport,” White continued. “And then he moved up to Heavyweight, won easily at Heavyweight. And the other thing is that you have to factor in too is longevity. It’s undeniable. You can hate all you want. Jon Jones is the greatest of all time.”
Nevertheless, Jones may be undefeated in the cage (ignoring the Matt Hamill disqualification loss), but his numerous drug test failures and wild scandals have some puritans (and jealous former foes) ruling him out.
And then there are more recent fans like Fridman, who are Khabib appreciators.
“I think that Khabib had the potential to be in the running for that,” White said. “He just didn’t stick around a lot. First of all, he had injuries that, you know, he should have been where he got a lot sooner had he not had the injuries that he had, and the setbacks in his career. But, there’s no doubt Khabib is one of the all time greats.”
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