UFC President Dana White raised a few eyebrows earlier this week when he told The Dave Portnoy Show that Anderson Silva, Jon Jones, Georges St-Pierre, and Kamaru Usman were among the greatest fighters to ever compete in MMA.
“You’d have to go Anderson Silva, GSP, Jones,” White said. “Usman is getting up there too.”
Sorry, Khabib Nurmagomedov did not make the list.
That might come as a surprise to fight fans who remember these definitive comments, back when White was touting the undefeated “Eagle” — who retired from active competition in late 2020 — as the greatest MMA fighter of all time.
“I picked Jon Jones, I picked Kamaru Usman, GSP, and Anderson Silva,” White confirmed to Yahoo Sports. “Anderson just did more, he was there longer. The dominance of Khabib is unbelievable. It’s a different day and era with different levels and skills.”
Just ask this retired ex-champion.
The 20-1 Usman, like St-Pierre before him, has dominated the UFC welterweight division, racking up 15 straight wins with five consecutive title defenses. Nurmagomedov (29-0) only defended his title three times after capturing the vacant lightweight strap in early 2018.