Jon Jones’ greatest of all time claim has been challenged, with Khabib Nurmagomedov given the nod ahead of him.
The greatest of all time debate is rarely ever universally agreed upon by fanbases, and that remains the case in mixed martial arts. Many factors go into being labeled the GOAT, with championship success and dominance among the main criteria for a fighter to be included in the discussion.
Jon Jones has that in abundance. Not only is he the youngest UFC champion in company history, but he is also the most-decorated champion in the promotion, with 16 title-fight wins since debuting in 2008. Jones did all of this while being one of the most dominant fighters we’ve ever seen grace the octagon. The now-38-year-old made elite competition look like amateurs during the height of his career, and is considered by most to be the best the UFC has ever seen.
But despite the good work he managed throughout his career, the glaring negatives cannot be ignored. On several instances, Jones has failed drug tests, which have been a huge stain on his legacy.
While not discrediting him as a fighter, American Kickboxing Academy head coach Javier Mendez believes Jones cannot be considered the greatest after he was found guilty of using PEDs. Instead, Mendez presented that mantle to Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“The GOAT for me is Khabib,” Mendez said. “And I would put Jon Jones in that category, but I can’t. You paid the price. You lost your prize.”
“If you’re caught doing something you shouldn’t have been doing, how can you be considered at the top of the league? If this is a true sport, and in a true sport, you cannot. Even though you are, you cannot. You cannot put that person ahead. How many people have won Olympic gold medals, and then they find out they cheated, one way or another, and got the Olympic gold medals taken away from them? Well, if it’s true for any other sport, it should be true for MMA, too.”
“So, that’s the only reason why I don’t consider him the greatest. I do consider him one of them, even though, but I would have considered him the greatest of all time, for damn sure.”