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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Ben Davies

Dana White ranks four fighters ahead of Khabib Nurmagomedov in 'best ever' list

UFC president Dana White has ranked four fighters ahead of Khabib Nurmagomedov in the 'best ever' debate - including Kamaru Usman and Jon Jones.

The Russian star reigned undefeated during his time in the UFC's lightweight division and has entered some people's mind as the greatest ever fighter in the promotion.

He defeated the likes of Conor McGregor and Justin Gaethje during his reign before hanging up his gloves in 2020.

However Dana White has also named Anderson Silva and Georges St Pierre on his list ahead of the Russian admitting that the Brazilian "did more" during his career.

"I picked Jon Jones, Kamaru Usman, Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva," White told Yahoo Sports when asked about his 'best ever' fighters.

Khabib Nurmagomedov has been snubbed by Dana White in his top four 'best ever' UFC fighters (Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

"Anderson just did more and he was there longer. The dominance of Khabib is unbelievable and like you say it is a different day and era with different levels and skills."

Nurmagomedov had an illustrious career at lightweight and was responsible for the highest selling pay-per-view event in the history of the UFC alongside bitter rival McGregor.

However he has been placed below a number of fighters including Jones who is planning on making a return to the sport in the heavyweight division.

'Bones' reigned as two-time light-heavyweight champion during his UFC career and has fought some of the biggest names including Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson, Chael Sonnen, Alexander Gustafsson and Daniel Cormier.

Jones has also been placed in the UFC's hall of fame after his famous fight with Gustafsson and is looking to eclipse his legacy further at the top weight.

Silva reigned as middleweight champion in addition to making 10 successful defences of his crown while also competing at light-heavyweight.

Who do you rank as the greatest fighter of all-time in the UFC? Let us know your list in the comments section below

St Pierre was a tremendous two-division champion winning titles at both middleweight and three times at welterweight with many considering him the best fighter in UFC history.

Current welterweight Usman has reigned as an undefeated champion since 2019 defeating the likes of Jorge Masvidal, Gilbert Burns and Colby Covington as he continues to be unchallenged at the top table.

The Nigerian is also currently ranked as the sport's leading pound-for-pound fighter and is well on his way to cementing his name as one of the sport's most dominant fighters ever.

White has previously spoken of Usman's sensational record and is confident that he could go down as one of the best welterweights ever.

“He just broke his record tonight,” White told reporters after UFC 258.

"“If you look at what he just did, he broke his record tonight for consecutive wins (in the welterweight division), and if this guy keeps rolling, if Usman can keep doing what he’s doing, he’s going to go down as the greatest welterweight ever. Fact.

“Just look at who he’s fought and who he has to fight here in the future, it’s undeniable that this guy will go down as the best welterweight, the question is, where will he go down in the history of the sport?”

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