3 reasons why Jon Jones can never be MMA's GOAT 

#2 His record is somewhat questionable

Jones has only beaten a handful of fighters - Daniel Cormier included - in their prime

On the surface, Jon Jones has one of the most impressive records in MMA history. He’s currently 25-1 with one No Contest – a fight that he won before testing positive for PEDs – and the lone loss was a 2009 disqualification against Matt Hamill in a fight that most agree referee Steve Mazzagatti made a complete mess of. However, when compared to the record of Georges St. Pierre or Fedor Emelianenko, it’s easy to find some holes.

How many of Jones’ opponents, particularly during his title reign, were actually in their prime at the time that ‘Bones’ faced them? The answer, surprisingly, is not too many. Ryan Bader, who Jones defeated in 2011 to earn his title shot, didn’t really enter his prime until many years after the fight. And Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua, who ‘Bones’ unseated to claim the title, was coming off a lengthy layoff due to knee surgery prior to their fight.

What of his other victims? ‘Rampage’ Jackson clearly peaked during his own Light-Heavyweight title reign and hadn’t looked good in years prior to his fight with Jones. Lyoto Machida had lost two of his previous three fights before facing Jones, while Vitor Belfort and Chael Sonnen were both blown up 185lbers. And of his more recent opponents, Thiago Santos and Anthony Smith earned their title shots fairly, but prior to receiving them, were largely viewed as career journeymen.

Essentially then, Jones only has a handful of truly impressive wins – Rashad Evans, Alexander Gustafsson, Daniel Cormier and Glover Teixeira – on his ledger. Compare that to Emelianenko, who defeated the likes of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Heath Herring, Mirko Cro Cop, Andrei Arlovski and Tim Sylvia all in their primes, and St. Pierre – who essentially ran through three different generations of fighters all at the peak of their powers – and it’s not really a close comparison.

Jones is undoubtedly a great fighter and he’s quite clearly the best Light-Heavyweight in MMA history, but the unfortunate truth is that the era in which he’s been competing in hasn’t been the best for the 205lbs division – which peaked in the early 2000’s. And that’s another strike against his claim to being the ‘GOAT’.