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After not competing in the octagon for three years, Jon Jones returned and put on an all-time performance as he captured heavyweight gold and cemented himself as the greatest mixed martial artist of all time... or did he?
'Bones' took an extended hiatus from competing and left fans in limbo regarding his return, but when he announced he would fight Ciryl Gane for gold, not many expected to see what he displayed at UFC 285. In a one-sided dominant showcase, the Hall-of-Famer submitted his opponent early into the first round.
During a recent interview, Thiago Santos heaped praise on the former light heavyweight king but insisted that he lies only second on his greatest-of-all-time list behind heavyweight phenom Fedor Emelianenko.
"It's about opinion, you know. So, in my opinion, he is in second place. In my opinion, still, Fedor Emelianenko is the greatest fighter [of all-time]."
Thiago Santos claimed that he expected Jon Jones to win the heavyweight title against Ciryl Gane on March 4, but not as easily as he did, which is seemingly an opinion shared by a large number of the MMA community.
'Marreta' has once shared the cage with the Albuquerque native and, despite tearing his ACL, MCL, and PCL in the bout, the Brazilian put up a good fight against the then-205lb champion but ultimately came up short.
Since the loss, the 39-year-old has failed to find the form that led him to a UFC title shot, losing four of his last five and falling down the rankings in the octagon. Check out what Santos had to say regarding Jon Jones' GOAT status in the video below.
UFC GOAT: Should Jon Jones be considered the greatest to ever compete in the cage?
There is constant discussion amongst MMA fans about who should be considered the greatest of all time, with just a handful of fighters often making the cut.
While Khabib Nurmagomedov, Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre, and Demetrious Johnson—alongside a number of others—have arguments to be made for them, they will struggle to compete against somebody with 'Bones' resume.
Capturing titles in two different divisions, having the longest unbeaten run and most title fight wins in UFC history, becoming the youngest champion ever seen inside the octagon, and a record that involves wins over Hall-of-Famers and multiple former champions will forever be a tough task to outshine.
