Jon Jones
Demetrious Johnson
Stat by stat
Bars are scaled to the leader in this list.
The verdict
Jon Jones leads 4 of 4 categories. Our all-time ranking places Jon Jones at #1 and Demetrious Johnson at #5.
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 Demetrious Johnson
'Mighty Mouse' is arguably the most technically complete fighter of all time, a flyweight who mastered every phase without a defining weakness. As the inaugural UFC flyweight champion he set the record for most consecutive title defenses with 11, a run of dominance from 2013 to 2018 in which he blended world-class striking, wrestling and submissions into a seamless whole. His suplex directly into an armbar against Ray Borg at UFC 216 in 2017 is one of the most spectacular finishes in history. Because he competed in the sport's lightest and least-promoted division, his brilliance was often underappreciated relative to bigger names. Traded to ONE Championship in 2018, he won that promotion's flyweight grand prix and title and delivered a flying-knee knockout of Adriano Moraes in 2022. He retired around 25-4-1, revered by peers as a fighter's fighter and a technician without equal.