UFC Hall of Famer Rashad Evans: 'Jon Jones Is the Best in History'
May 30, 2019
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans believes Jon Jones is "the best in history."
Evans, 39, retired from MMA last year, and it was announced earlier this month he will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
During his professional career, which he finished with a 19-8-1 record, Evans fought Jones once, in April 2012, and he lost by unanimous decision.
When asked who was the best fighter he faced in his career, American Evans did not hesitate in naming Jones, the current light heavyweight champion, per TMZ Sports:
"Without a doubt, Jon Jones. When it comes down to it, I think that Jon Jones is the best in history. Apart from his troubles outside the cage, and things like that. When he's inside the cage, he's dynamic. He's got some skill. But, I would say technically speaking, he's probably the best fighter.
"I say that because when you fight guys that good you feel like, after the fight is over, there is another level I need to get to. You don't feel like, 'I had a bad day out,' you feel like, 'I need to get to another level to be able to beat this guy.'"
Jones, 31, is a two-time undisputed UFC light heavyweight champion.
His most recent victory was a unanimous-decision win over Anthony Smith at UFC 235 in March, which took his professional record to 24-1.
As alluded to by Evans, Bones has endured some troubles away from the Octagon during his career.
Both his defeats of Daniel Cormier, in 2015 and 2017, were followed by him being stripped of the light heavyweight title—first for disciplinary reasons and then for testing positive for a banned substance.
That is not to say he does not have numerous untarnished triumphs over the auspicious likes of Alexander Gustafsson, Mauricio Rua, Quinton Jackson, Vitor Belfort, Lyoto Machida and Ryan Bader.
Earlier this year, UFC President Dana White stopped short of naming Amanda Nunes above Jones in the list of all-time fighters.
And it is clear that, from his experience in the Octagon, Evans never met a better fighter.