Jon Jones
Anderson Silva
Stat by stat
Bars are scaled to the leader in this list.
The verdict
Dead even across the measured categories. Our all-time ranking places Jon Jones at #1 and Anderson Silva at #3.
The case for Jon Jones
Widely regarded as the most complete fighter the sport has produced, Jones holds a record of 28-1 with the lone loss a controversial 2009 disqualification for illegal downward elbows against Matt Hamill — a fight he was dominating. He became the youngest UFC champion in history at 23 by stopping Shogun Rua at UFC 128 in 2011, then ruled light heavyweight for nearly a decade, beating Daniel Cormier, Alexander Gustafsson, Lyoto Machida, Vitor Belfort, Glover Teixeira, Thiago Santos and Dominick Reyes. In 2023 he moved up to heavyweight and submitted Ciryl Gane for the vacant title at UFC 285, then stopped former champion Stipe Miocic with a spinning back kick to the body at UFC 309 in 2024. His unmatched reach, creativity and fight IQ are shadowed only by suspensions and legal issues outside the cage.
The case for Anderson Silva
For seven years 'The Spider' was untouchable, holding the longest title reign in UFC history at 2,457 days and a record 16 consecutive victories with 10 straight middleweight title defenses. His striking looked like something from another sport: the front-kick knockout of Vitor Belfort at UFC 126 in 2011, the matrix-like head movement, the finishes of Rich Franklin, Forrest Griffin, Chael Sonnen and Chris Leben. He fought with his hands down and made elite opponents miss by inches before countering with fight-ending precision, and he twice moved up to light heavyweight and won. His aura finally cracked when Chris Weidman knocked him out at UFC 162 in 2013, and the 2013 rematch ended horrifically when Silva broke his leg on a checked kick. He retired 34-11, but at his peak he was the most artistic finisher the sport has seen.