Randy Couture says Jon Jones winning heavyweight title “erases any argument” about his GOAT status
UFC legend Randy Couture says that Jon Jones winning the heavyweight title “erases any argument” about his status in the GOAT discussion.
Couture is one of the all-time greats himself. The UFC Hall of Famer, who is now age 57 and retired, is universally regarded as one of the top-10 pound-for-pound fighters of all time. He was a six-time UFC champion who won titles at both light heavyweight and heavyweight. As time has gone on, Couture’s name has slipped a bit in the P4P rankings. At one point, he was in the discussion for No. 1, but now it’s fair to say he’s top-10.
That’s because over the years other elite fighters have come along such as Georges St. Pierre, Khabib Nurmagomdov, and Jon Jones, to overtake pioneers such as Couture and fellow heavyweight great Fedor Emelianenko in the P4P rankings. That being said, when you’re talking about the P4P discussion, there is no better person to ask than Couture.
Speaking to TMZ Sports, Couture spoke about Jon Jones and his spot in the all-time pound-for-pound discussion, arguing a second UFC championship will end all doubt.
“I think Jon Jones is right there. I think if Jon really wants to solidify himself as pound-for-pound, he needs to go up to heavyweight and he needs to take a shot at winning that title. And, then that erases any argument that anybody could have. He’s a two-division champ. He’s been dominant in the light heavyweight division for a long time now,” Couture said.
“I think that’s something that Jones needs to look at, and really solidly his legacy in the sport by going up and winning the heavyweight division, and showing just how technically proficient and athletic he is.”
The UFC legend also mentioned that while he believes his pupil at Xtreme Couture in Francis Ngannou deserves the next heavyweight title shot against champion Stipe Miocic, Couture said he was excited about the prospect of Jones challenging for the belt after.
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Topics:
Jon Jones Randy Couture UFC
