Aljamain Sterling factors to non-public expertise to argue why Jon Jones ought to be the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter.
UFC light-weight champion Islam Makhachev (25-1 MMA, 14-1 UFC), who notched his third title protection by submitting Dustin Poirier in Saturday’s UFC 302 headliner, is at the moment the promotion’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter.
Regardless of Makhachev’s spectacular end, UFC CEO Dana White disagrees with the rankings. He thinks former longtime UFC gentle heavyweight champion and present heavyweight champ Jones ought to be No. 1, and Sterling agrees.
“If we’re speaking pound-for-pound, everybody’s standards is totally different,” Sterling stated on his YouTube channel. “However I feel pound-for-pound, the best way I perceive it’s, if weight was not an element, measurement was not an element, skill-for-skill, who can be the very best man? And I agree, I feel it’s Jon Jones.”
Sterling in contrast Jones’ comeback after greater than a three-year layoff to submit Ciryl Gane and develop into vacant heavyweight champion to Henry Cejudo’s try. Cejudo tried to do the identical when he got here out of retirement to problem then-bantamweight champ Sterling after virtually three years away however fell brief.
“I used to be about to say, three years off and to come back again and do this to the No. 1 man like Dana stated, I really actually agree with that,” Sterling stated. “If we’re speaking about proper now, Jon Jones, what he did is tremendous spectacular. Henry Cejudo got here again, he tried to do what he tried to do and look what occurred. He’s ‘the best fight athlete of all time,’ no disrespect to him however …”
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