For years, Dana White has praised Jon Jones as the greatest fighter of all time. The UFC 309 heavyweight title fight between Jones and Stipe Miocic, held at Madison Square Garden in New York City, has been promoted as the bout that could finally settle who deserves the title of greatest heavyweight fighter ever. UFC CEO Dana White has repeatedly referred to Jones as the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the promotion.
However, some fight fans believe Jones doesn’t deserve that top spot due to his inactivity, arguing that fighters like Alex Pereira and Islam Makhachev might be more deserving. For Jones, though, just being mentioned in this conversation is an honor.
“It’s just an honor, that’s all,” Jones told Kevin Iole with a smile. “It’s a huge honor to even be considered, at 37 years old, one of the most well-rounded fighters in the sport. I’m just very grateful that my boss—a man who’s sat front row for all our fights—sees that in me.”
Jones went on to share White’s sentiments: “For [Dana] to say, ‘Hey, listen guys, trust me. I know what I’m watching. I know what I’m looking at, and in my opinion, if Jon was the same size as a lot of these other guys, Jon would be in the mix,’ is just incredible.”
Jones recognizes that with many new fans entering the sport, there’s a “what-have-you-done-lately” mentality. He appreciates that White acknowledges his full body of work, not just his recent performances.
“I’m grateful that he’s not letting the naysayers or some fans push me to the side. I’ve done a tremendous amount of work for this company—at a very young age, at middle age, and now even at an older age. I’m just grateful to be recognized.”
