Jon Jones puts himself on MMA Mount Rushmore alongside 3 legendary UFC champions

Arguably the greatest fighter in the history of the UFC and MMA as a whole recently showed some respect to a few other legendary names.

Currently the UFC’s reigning heavyweight champion, Jon Jones previously established himself as an all-time great during his time with the UFC light heavyweight belt before he moved up a division in 2023 and claimed a second title by submitting Ciryl Gane at UFC 285.

“Bones” successfully defended the heavyweight belt against divisional great Stipe Miocic at UFC 309. Fans have recently called for him to be stripped of the title amidst delays to a fight with Tom Aspinall, but there’s no denying that Jones is one of the greatest fighters to ever step into the Octagon.

Jon Jones (red gloves) fights Stipe Miocoic (blue gloves) in the heavyweight bout during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Jones Picks His MMA Mount Rushmore

Many fans already consider Jones to be the GOAT of MMA. While the 37-year-old does acknowledge his own place in the sport's history, he also celebrated three other UFC legends when he was recently asked to name his Mount Rushmore of fighters.

“Demetrious Johnson, Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre, and myself, in no specific order,” Jones answered on the Deep Cut Podcast (h/t Championship Rounds). “I think we’ve all done really great things in this sport.”

Georges St-Pierre speaks during a press conference to promote his middleweight title bout against Michael Bisping. — Georges St-Pierre speaks during a press conference to promote his middleweight title bout against Michael Bisping (not pictured) prior to weigh ins for UFC 209 at T-Mobile Arena. | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Demetrious Johnson, Anderson Silva, and Georges St-Pierre are all in the conversation alongside Jones as MMA’s GOAT. Of those fighters, only St-Pierre matched Jones’ feat of moving up in weight to claim a second belt when “Rush” returned from a four-year layoff to defeat Michael Bisping in a middleweight title bout at UFC 217.

Fans Still Waiting On Jones vs. Aspinall Blockbuster

As impressive as Jones’ UFC career has already been, the future Hall of Famer has drawn the ire of fans this year with his apparent disinterest in a heavyweight title unification bout wtih interim titleholder Aspinall.

The 32-year-old Aspinall is undefeated in the UFC outside of a 15-second injury TKO against Curtis Blaydes in 2022, and at UFC 295 the Englishman claimed the interim heavyweight belt when he knocked out Sergei Pavlovich in just over a minute.

Tom Aspinall (blue gloves) prepares to fight Sergei Pavlovich (red gloves) during UFC 295 at Madison Square Garden. | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Aspinall surpassed the Pavlovich performance last July when he met Blaydes in a rematch and finished “Razor” in one minute to defend his interim title, and since then he’s been waiting for Jones to sign on for what could be the biggest fight in UFC history.

“Bones” has taken to trolling fans as of late as the likelihood of him fighting Aspinall in 2025 seems to get more and more unlikely, and it remains to be seen what effect passing up on that matchup may have on Jones’ legacy in the eyes of combat sports fans.

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