Jon Jones dares challengers to his MMA GOAT status

Jon Jones has a message for anyone questioning his status as the greatest mixed martial artist of all time.

The UFC heavyweight champion took to social media after Alex Pereira's second-round knockout loss to Ciryl Gane at UFC White House this past weekend, dismissing speculation that the Brazilian could overtake him with a third divisional title. "Thinking that you have the work ethic, the desire, the faith, and the focus to dethrone me as the GOAT of MMA," Jones wrote on Twitter in a message that has since been deleted, per MMA Fighting. "Good luck to you all."

Jones' record backs up the talk

The 39-year-old holds victories over nine current, former, or future UFC champions and became the youngest titleholder in promotion history when he won the heavyweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">light heavyweight belt in 2011. He collected 16 title-fight wins and 12 total defenses across two weight classes before moving to heavyweight, where he submitted Gane in 2023. His résumé carries one official loss — a disqualification for illegal elbows against Matt Hamill — though a positive drug test overturned his 2017 knockout of Daniel Cormier to a no-contest.

Jones posted a video on fight night rolling his eyes at the GOAT chatter surrounding Pereira, who had drawn comparisons from UFC CEO Dana White before the loss. Whether anyone will match Jones' collection of accolades remains unlikely, but he made clear he welcomes the attempts.

Reported via:

• MMA Fighting — Jon Jones sends message to anyone trying to dethrone him as the GOAT of MMA