Javier Mendez Makes Honest Confession Why Jon Jones Can't be GOAT
Javier Mendez pointed out why he cannot consider Jon Jones as the GOAT in the UFC.
The GOAT debate has been going around in the UFC for a long time now. With a lot of contenders for the title, Dana White has publicly accepted that Jon Jones is the GOAT.
However, that's an opinion that is heavily debated at the moment. With Jones having a history of getting involved with banned substances, his status as the greatest has been questioned significantly. Reflecting on the debate, Javier Mendez has pointed out why ‘Bones’ cannot be the GOAT.
Javier Mendez Has Straightforward Take on Jon Jones
Islam Makhachev’s coach recently doubled down on the GOAT debate. He explained that there was no doubt about Jones’ achievements in the sport. But in parallel, his success was also largely marred by cheating allegations. According to Mendez, even an Olympic gold medalist is stripped of his medal if cheating is detected.
“If you're caught doing something you shouldn't have been doing, how can you be considered at the top of the league? I mean, if this is a true sport, and a true sport, you can't, you cannot, even though you are, you cannot, you cannot put that person ahead… So, that's the only reason why I don't consider him the greatest,” Mendez said.
However, despite the criticism, Mendez also pointed out that the former UFC heavyweight champion was one of the greatest fighters in UFC history. Meanwhile, Merab Dvalishvili has a very contrasting opinion on who the UFC GOAT was.
Merab Dvalishvili Cites Jon Jones as UFC GOAT
After Islam Makhachev broke Anderson Silva’s record for most successive wins in UFC history, the GOAT debate re-emerged. A lot of critics heavily questioned Mendez's student, Makhachev, as the greatest. Shedding light on the same, the former UFC bantamweight champion was reluctant to put the Dagestani champion on a higher pedestal than Jones.
“For me, goat is Jon Jones, you know, he has the most title defenses, and he was fighting for title fights and main events. Islam is a great fighter and... you know, I mean, he's one of the goats but the real goat is Jon Jones you know but yeah all the respect for Islam Makhachev” Dvalishvili told Helen Yee.
It looks like the GOAT debate will go on for a long time into the future. With people having differing opinions, it might be tough to reach a unanimous conclusion.
