Mar 4, 2016; Las Vegas, NV, USA; UFC fighter Jon Jones holds his championship belt during a press conference prior to weigh-ins for UFC 196 at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

mma

Ariel Helwani Takes A Jab At Jon Jones’ Legacy; Names The Fighter He Believes Is The ‘GOAT’

Veteran MMA journalist Ariel Helwani takes up the GOAT conversation and excludes Jon Jones from the top rank!

The MMA world has always been obsessed with one question: who’s the greatest fighter of all time? For years, Jon Jones seemed to have that title locked down. The guy was a freak of nature who dominated the light heavyweight division like nobody’s business. He became the youngest UFC champion in history at just 23 years old and defended his belt multiple times against legends. Then he moved to heavyweight and claimed that title as well. But legacies are fragile, and one bad ending can change everything.

Jon Jones has been dancing around retirement for what feels like forever. The heavyweight champion has been playing hard to get with Tom Aspinall, the interim champ who’s been waiting for his shot at unifying the belts. After months, Jones finally called it quits. Dana White broke the news at a press conference in Baku, Azerbaijan. This was not exactly the grand farewell fans would expect for someone many consider the GOAT. And MMA journalist Ariel Helwani has something to say about this.

Ariel Helwani Blasts Jones’ Exit Strategy

Helwani didn’t hold back when he heard about Jones’ retirement announcement. Speaking on his show, the veteran journalist called the whole situation “an absolute joke.” He was particularly fired up about how Jones had been avoiding the Aspinall fight for months. According to Helwani, Jones never wanted to take that fight in the first place, despite all the public posturing.

“Jon Jones said he was in. And then a couple of days later, he said he was out. Ever since then, the UFC has been trying to convince him to come back, to take the fight, one last fight. And he said, no, he’s doing the reality show. He’s living his best life. He’s doing seminars, all this stuff and tweeting away.”

Apparently, Jones had initially agreed to fight Aspinall after getting his asking price from the UFC. But then he changed his mind just days later and backed out. The promotion spent months trying to convince him to reconsider, but Jones was done. He was more interested in doing reality shows and living his best life than defending his title against a hungry young fighter.

What really bothered Helwani was how this whole mess affected Tom Aspinall. The English fighter had been the interim champion for over a year, defending his belt while waiting for his unification shot. Helwani pointed out that Aspinall’s last fight was almost a year ago, and the guy was just sitting there watching his career stagnate.

Ariel Helwani Gives GSP The Nod For The GOAT Title

Helwani completely flipped the GOAT conversation. In his view, Georges St-Pierre deserves that title, not Jones. And his reasoning makes a lot of sense when fans think about it.

Helwani compared how both fighters handled the end of their championship runs. When GSP beat Johny Hendricks at UFC 167, he gave up his belt that same night. No drama, no holding up the division, just a clean exit that let other fighters chase their dreams. Four years later, when GSP came back to fight Michael Bisping, he won the middleweight title and then vacated it again within weeks. The guy knew how to leave without creating a mess.

Jones, on the other hand, has been a different story entirely. He won the heavyweight title by beating Ciryl Gane for a vacant belt. Then he took a year off with an injury before fighting Stipe Miocic in a fight that didn’t make much sense. When it came time to face the interim champion, Jones was suddenly interested in fighting everyone except Tom Aspinall.

“Yesterday, I spoke to GSP and I told GSP he did it the best. Again, compare what he did to what Jon Jones did. And this is one of many reasons why I consider GSP the greatest of all time. When GSP beat Johny Hendricks at UFC 167, he relinquished the belt that night. He didn’t hold up anyone. He didn’t stop anyone from living out their dreams.“

GSP always did things the right way, while Jones seems to be picking and choosing his battles based on what’s easiest for his legacy. As Helwani put it, this wasn’t about not wanting to fight, it was a calculated business decision to walk away undefeated rather than risk losing to a young, dangerous opponent.

(Image Credit: Mark J. Rebilas – Imagn Images)

Ariel Helwani

Georges St-Pierre

Jon Jones

Zaid Quraishi

mma

I am a dedicated MMA and Boxing content writer at The Playoffs. I was instantly hooked on MMA after watching the fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Gegard Mousasi back in 2014, and since then, i have been an avid writer with a deep love for the sport and its techniques, providing readers with a thorough understanding of the sport. My favorite aspect of working at The Playoffs is the creative freedom it provides. The diverse range of topics, from listicles and SEO to news articles, keeps me engaged and motivates me to continuously improve my skills! I aim to capture the excitement of the combat sports world in my writing, acting as the middleman between fighters and their die-hard fans. It is kind of like a referee, but with words!