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Conor McGregor has a legendary UFC career. Not only is he the first ever double-champ in the promotion, but he has headlined the five best-selling pay-per-view events in UFC history. McGregor has, by far, made the UFC and President Dana White more money than any other fighter.
McGregor's last title fight, which came against Khabib Nurmagomedov, currently tops that list. Despite his dominance that saw him retire with a 29-0 record, Khabib struggled to sell pay-per-views. It should come as no surprise that McGregor was far more valuable to the UFC.
Dana White recently appeared on an episode of GQ's Actually Me, where he was asked about his top five fighters of all-time. White's answer was one that many will disagree with, but shouldn't be surprised by, as he stated (starting at the 7:43 mark):
"Jon Jones, Anderson Silva, Ronda Rousey, Conor McGregor, GSP. There's so many other people that should be on there. Usman should be on there."
Several of the names on Dana White's list shouldn't come as a surprise. Jon Jones, Anderson Silva, and Georges St-Pierre are generally a part of every unbiased fan's top five fighters. Kamaru Usman, who White left off his list, is also a solid choice, as he is 15-0 in the UFC with five title defenses while dominating the welterweight division.
Conor McGregor and Ronda Rousey seem to be included more for their popularity than their accomplishments. McGregor has had 14 UFC fights, in which he is 10-4. Rousey only had 8 UFC fights, going 6-2. Khabib Nurmagomedov had 13 fights, but he was 13-0, including a UFC 229 victory over McGregor.
White's reasoning for excluding Khabib from the greatest of all-time discussion was that he retired too early.
This same logic should remove McGregor and particularly Rousey, who both have fewer wins and more losses than Khabib. Rousey also left the UFC with fewer fights and at a younger age than Khabib.
Watch Dana White's full comments on GQ's Actually Me below:
Should Conor McGregor be ranked over Khabib Nurmagomedov?
Conor McGregor is undoubtedly a UFC legend and the most popular star in the sport. Dana White's ranking, however, seems to overrate McGregor and Ronda Rousey for their popularity. Khabib Nurmagomedov and Amanda Nunes have defeated McGregor and Rousey, respectively, and both possess more impressive resumes.
A Twitter poll from 2020 showed that most fans who voted did not view McGregor in the same light as White:
With Conor McGregor suffering the only two knockout losses of his career since then, it is likely that his ranking would be even lower in a similar poll.
Khabib Nurmagomedov, on the other hand, may not be one of the top five UFC fighters of all-time. Despite being dominant, he only defended his belt three times before retiring in his prime. With that being said, he should still be ranked higher than McGregor, who had a dominant peak, but was unable to sustain it from a longevity standpoint.
