Even though Dana White believes Jon Jones is already the greatest MMA fighter of all time, he still thinks Jonny Bones has even more to gain if he became heavyweight champion.
Jon Jones is regarded by many to be the greatest mixed martial artist of all time. One of the people who grant him this distinction is the boss himself, UFC President Dana White. Despite all their differences, White has consistently given Jones credit for his incredible run in the promotion, which includes never losing a fight by decision or stoppage, essentially being undefeated while fighting the best of the best for over a decade in the UFC.
After compiling a GOAT-caliber résumé as the most dominant light heavyweight champion of all time, Jones recently made the decision to vacate the title and move up to heavyweight. That move has hit a stall along with its negotiations, and White isn’t sure Jones will ever fight again. If he doesn’t, White believes his position at the top of the greatest fighters of all-time list remains unchanged.
“He’s had a great run. He’s got an incredible legacy,” White said of Jones at the UFC 262 post-fight press conference. “I personally see him as the GOAT right now. You got guys that are nipping on his heels like Usman and some other guys out there. It’s up to him. He could fight this summer or he could never fight again. I mean, that’s up to him.”
White Believes HW Title Win Would Make Jones Untouchable As GOAT
Even though White believes Kamaru Usman and potentially others are beginning to close the gap on Jones, there is one thing that would make “Bones” practically unreachable for years to come. That, of course, is if Jones ever did capture the heavyweight championship to become the baddest and the greatest MMA fighter on the planet.
White believes that Jones achieving this would be similar to the widened gap NFL quarterback Tom Brady created between himself and other quarterback legends when he won his seventh Super Bowl on a second football team earlier this year.
“I mean, he could do it,” White said about Jones hypothetically winning the heavyweight title. “That’s like Brady going out and winning another Super Bowl with the Bucs. Obviously, going up to heavyweight would be tough to argue, if he wins the title, that he’s not the GOAT. But right here, right now, he could retire, and I still consider him the GOAT right now until somebody else accomplishes what he has.”
What do you think a heavyweight title win would do for Jon Jones’s legacy?
