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Many MMA fans worldwide consider Jon Jones to be the greatest fighter ever to grace the octagon. UFC president Dana White has also reiterated the same sentiment multiple times.
'Bones' was the king of the light heavyweight division of the UFC for almost a decade. In 2011, Jones became the youngest fighter in the UFC to win a championship title when he finished veteran Mauricio Rua via TKO aged 23.
From that point on, Jones went on an undefeated streak in the UFC, collecting wins over legends like Lyoto Machida, Rashad Evans, Vitor Belfort, Quinton Jackson, Daniel Cormier, and Chael Sonnen.
After his victory against Dominick Reyes, arguably the closest fight of 'Bones' career, Jones vacated the light heavyweight title in August 2020 to move up a weight class and claim heavyweight gold.
Since that announcement, the 33-year-old has been training and putting on extra muscle in preparation for his heavyweight debut.
But it appears Jon Jones' fans will have to wait a bit longer to see the former 205-pound champion make his heavyweight debut as the UFC legend will not be fighting in 2021.
The pound-for-pound king's last fight was in February 2020, and his next appearance in the octagon will probably come in 2022. There is a chance that in that time frame, another fighter could take the number one spot in the UFC's pound-for-pound rankings.
Here are five UFC athletes who could become the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the near future:
#5 Dustin Poirier - Former UFC interim lightweight champion
After Khabib Nurmagomedov retired from the UFC, Dustin Poirier is arguably the best fighter in the UFC's lightweight division. 'The Diamond' has names like Justin Gaethje, Max Holloway, Eddie Alvarez, and Conor McGregor in the win column of his resume.
After knocking out McGregor at UFC 257, there are not many names left for the Louisiana resident to beat in the 155-pound division. If Poirier wins his trilogy bout against the Irishman at UFC 264, he will likely be the next challenger for UFC gold in the most dangerous division of the promotion.
A win over current lightweight champion Charles Oliveira would significantly strengthen Poirier's argument for the pound-for-pound throne.
#4 Francis Ngannou - Current UFC heavyweight champion
There is no man scarier than Francis Ngannou in the UFC right now. With his vicious knockout power, 'The Predator' has knocked out legends like Junior Dos Santos, Cain Velasquez, and Alistair Overeem.
The Cameroonian fighter recently knocked out former heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic to earn the title of "baddest man on the planet."
If Ngannou keeps finishing his opponents in a similar devastating fashion, it will not be long before he is crowned the new pound-for-pound king.
#3 Max Holloway - Former UFC featherweight champion
Although the 145-pound champ Alex Volkanovski is ranked higher than Max Holloway on the pound-for-pound list, it is the Hawaiian fighter who has a real shot at claiming the number one spot on the list.
After losing two razor-close fights against 'The Great', Holloway made a triumphant return to the octagon when he put on a 'Performance of the Year' contender against Calvin Kattar. At one point, 'Blessed' started shouting at the commentary table while dodging Kattar's punches.
His extremely close decision losses to Volkanovski suggest that 'Blessed' can win his third fight against the Australian.
If Holloway keeps putting on masterclass performances as he did with Kattar, he will have an easy time climbing to the number one spot on the pound-for-pound list.
#2 Israel Adesanya - Current UFC middleweight champion
Currently ranked number three on the pound-for-pound list, Israel Adesanya has cleaned out most of his division and is now looking for a rematch against Robert Whittaker.
'The Last Stylebender' is undefeated at middleweight, and it appears that the 31-year-old will dominate the division for a long time.
With one or two more title defenses, Adesanya will have a strong claim to the pound-for-pound throne.
#1 Kamaru Usman - Current UFC welterweight champion
With his spectacular knockout of Jorge Masvidal, UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman showed that he is growing in leaps and bounds with every fight.
'The Nigerian Nightmare' has beaten Colby Covington, Gilbert Burns, and Leon Edwards, the top three ranked welterweights. Usman is so far ahead that he is now rematching all these fighters.
After his win over Masvidal, the Nigerian fighter displaced Jon Jones as the number one pound-for-pound fighter on ESPN MMA's P4P list, and many feel he is the rightful P4P king in the UFC right now.
If 'Nigerian Nightmare' can put on a dominant performance in his next fight, he should definitely claim the pound-for-pound throne in the UFC.
Who do you see ruling the P4P rankings in the near future? Sound off in the comments!
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