Let us Review Usman's Title Reign for a sec

[Peli]

Conor was a FW. He basically has a single win of note at LW. Calling an undersized guy who has been hopelessly exposed at LW in your top 3 wins is a problem if you want to be the goat.

Justin and Dustin are strong fighters have but both shown to beatable. These fighters being in the P4P was nothing more than promotional tool for the fights.

You have to be unbeatable to be p4p?

You do realize Poirier had lost one in ten fights. Guess who that is? If Oliveira beats Poirier you're going to stamp him and cite him beating Poirier,I know it lol.

 

[PulsingJones]

My issue with Khabib's run as it relates to Usman's is Khabib faced very similar type of fighters that perfectly play into his wrestle-heavy style. He faced mostly strikers that are very susceptible to being outworked by a superior wrestler with cardio, IMO. I think the fighters he beat wouldn't be too much of a problem for Usman given the same weight, etc.

Otoh, if Khabib had to face a Colby or Burns type at 155, that would be a stiffer test and we could actually get some new looks on just how dominant (or not) Khabib potentially could be. Alas, the closest guys he faced to that would be like Gleison Tibau or RDA... maybe Al Iaquinta. So, you can see how his run left us wanting more.

As usual the goalposts keep moving.. When Khabib was dominating decorated wrestlers like Shalrous and Trujilo and lethal grapplers like Prime RDA, people wouldn't shut up about how Khabib will be exposed when he faces a good striker... Then when he smashed the strikers, the argument moved to a "Striker with perfect TDD" who was Gaejthe...

 

[Poatan Power]

All of Khabib's opponents where ranked in P4P list

Khabib's first 15 MMA opponents:

 

[PulsingJones]

Khabib's first 15 MMA opponents:

There were 2 Champions amongst those "cans"

 

[Peli]

Khabib's first 15 MMA opponents:

He could have fought 200 cans before the UFC for all that matters. Besides this post is only comparing ufc resume and quality of opponent.

His greatness is not measured at 29-0. It's measured in his UFC record. The 29-0 is marketability. That's it. He can be 29-1 and still be the best LW ever.

 

[DestinedAussie]

You have to be unbeatable to be p4p?

You do realize Poirier had lost one in ten fights. Guess who that is? If Oliveira beats Poirier you're going to stamp him and cite him beating Poirier,I know it lol.

You don't but idea half the top 5 P4P nearly all came from LW is a bit silly.

Dustin is indeed a good fighter and his Khabib's best win IMO. But it doesn't change Conor is an elite featherweight who hasn't shown he can consistently lose at LW.

Justin is interesting. Almost started 0-3 in UFC (against the top of the division) and then went on an epic run however he beat Tony and Cowboy well past their primes. I am really looking forward to see his next fight to see how he goes.

 

[Poatan Power]

There were 2 Champions amongst those "cans"

If you really wanna take on the cross of trying to pretend Khabib did anything noteworthy before debuting in the UFC, be my guest. If it weren't for the ONE guy who was like 31-11 on the middle eastern regional circuit, the records of his opponents were like 132-106.

He could have fought 200 cans before the UFC for all that matters. Besides this post is only comparing ufc resume and quality of opponent.

His greatness is not measured at 29-0. It's measured in his UFC record. The 29-0 is marketability. That's it. He can be 29-1 and still be the best LW ever.

he's in the argument for LW GOAT, but it isn't locked in AT ALL. The all time GOAT? just lmao

Khabib has missed weight multiple times
He defended the LW title 3 times, which only ties the other greats of the LW division (BJ, Benson, Frankie) whereas GOAT contenders from other divisions have doubled or tripled that total of defenses (DJ, Aldo, GSP, Jones, Silva)
Has the longest title reign of any LW in history in calendar days, but well behind other GOAT's like GSP, Jones, Silva, DJ, Aldo, even Cruz.
His last 5 fights were great for his resume, + RDA in 2014. His list of impressive wins (see: opponents that aren't bus drivers and DVD salesmen) do not even amount to the number of title defenses of any of the other GOAT contenders, God forbid their impressive wins and quality of opponents
Stipe has more title defenses
Ronda has more title defenses
Tito has more title defenses
Chuck has more title defenses
Pat Militich has more title defenses

Khabib is a great dude and I loved watching him fight. He isn't the GOAT. He may not even be the GOAT lightweight and if he is, it's barely. None of the other GOAT's of the LW division are in the all-time GOAT list and neither is he.

 

[laleggenda27]

As of now, their resumes are relatively similar. But Khabib obviously has the tougher opposition. And more importantly, he was more dominant in his fights than Usman has been.

But Usman will likely far surpass Khabib in terms of accomplishments, i.e., title defenses, top 10 wins, and overall longevity.

Personally, I most appreciate when great fighters want to test the limits of their greatness by moving up in weight. It's frustrating that most high-end mma fighters avoid tough challenges like the plague. I understand why most fighters don't move up, but it's frustrating nonetheless. Imagine if Khabib moved up and smashed Usman and Colby (I don't actually think he would win those fights); he'd be universally heralded as the GOAT.

 

[PulsingJones]

If you really wanna take on the cross of trying to pretend Khabib did anything noteworthy before debuting in the UFC, be my guest. If it weren't for the ONE guy who was like 31-11 on the middle eastern regional circuit, the records of his opponents were like 132-106.



he's in the argument for LW GOAT, but it isn't locked in AT ALL. The all time GOAT? just lmao

Khabib has missed weight multiple times
He defended the LW title 3 times, which only ties the other greats of the LW division (BJ, Benson, Frankie) whereas GOAT contenders from other divisions have doubled or tripled that total of defenses (DJ, Aldo, GSP, Jones, Silva)
Has the longest title reign of any LW in history in calendar days, but well behind other GOAT's like GSP, Jones, Silva, DJ, Aldo, even Cruz.
His last 5 fights were great for his resume, + RDA in 2014. His list of impressive wins (see: opponents that aren't bus drivers and DVD salesmen) do not even amount to the number of title defenses of any of the other GOAT contenders, God forbid their impressive wins and quality of opponents
Stipe has more title defenses
Ronda has more title defenses
Tito has more title defenses
Chuck has more title defenses
Pat Militich has more title defenses

Khabib is a great dude and I loved watching him fight. He isn't the GOAT. He may not even be the GOAT lightweight and if he is, it's barely. None of the other GOAT's of the LW division are in the all-time GOAT list and neither is he.

Both ACA and BRAVE are legit organizations that produced many UFC contenders, and Khabib beat their Champions early in his career... But yeah he just crushed cans...


"waaah only 3 title defenses "

 

[Poatan Power]

Both ACA and BRAVE are legit organizations that produced many UFC contenders, and Khabib beat their Champions early in his career... But yeah he just crushed cans...


"waaah only 3 title defenses "

Name the "UFC contenders" that the following organizations and events had

Oh, and if you'd like to see the records of his pre-UFC opponents...

• 2-5
• 0-2
• 12-5
• 4-3
• 0-1
• 13-2
• 12-3
• 31-11
• 9-11
• 5-3
• 13-13
• 2-5
• 3-6
• 8-4
• 8-5
• 41-38

163-118 I think. A 58% winning percentage. If that one guy wasn't 31-11, it'd literally be 132-107.

Come on PulsingJones, tell me what UFC contenders ravaged the UFC ranks from Gold Fist Russia?

 

[Peli]

You don't but idea half the top 5 P4P nearly all came from LW is a bit silly.

Dustin is indeed a good fighter and his Khabib's best win IMO. But it doesn't change Conor is an elite featherweight who hasn't shown he can consistently lose at LW.

Justin is interesting. Almost started 0-3 in UFC (against the top of the division) and then went on an epic run however he beat Tony and Cowboy well past their primes. I am really looking forward to see his next fight to see how he goes.

I agree with you on one thing. Dustin is Khabib's best win. I thought that before the gaethje fight. Best win and most flawless win out of the three title defenses.

 

[Peli]

If you really wanna take on the cross of trying to pretend Khabib did anything noteworthy before debuting in the UFC, be my guest. If it weren't for the ONE guy who was like 31-11 on the middle eastern regional circuit, the records of his opponents were like 132-106.



he's in the argument for LW GOAT, but it isn't locked in AT ALL. The all time GOAT? just lmao

Khabib has missed weight multiple times
He defended the LW title 3 times, which only ties the other greats of the LW division (BJ, Benson, Frankie) whereas GOAT contenders from other divisions have doubled or tripled that total of defenses (DJ, Aldo, GSP, Jones, Silva)
Has the longest title reign of any LW in history in calendar days, but well behind other GOAT's like GSP, Jones, Silva, DJ, Aldo, even Cruz.
His last 5 fights were great for his resume, + RDA in 2014. His list of impressive wins (see: opponents that aren't bus drivers and DVD salesmen) do not even amount to the number of title defenses of any of the other GOAT contenders, God forbid their impressive wins and quality of opponents
Stipe has more title defenses
Ronda has more title defenses
Tito has more title defenses
Chuck has more title defenses
Pat Militich has more title defenses

Khabib is a great dude and I loved watching him fight. He isn't the GOAT. He may not even be the GOAT lightweight and if he is, it's barely. None of the other GOAT's of the LW division are in the all-time GOAT list and neither is he.

No one brought up Goat. We're comparing Usman and Khabib's resume to this point and the quality of opponents usman and Khabib have fought. You're making it another conversation. If you don't want to say he's the goat, I'm not going to argue against that. I will argue that his quality of opponents and win is better than usman's quality of opponents and quality of wins.

 

[Dude Incredible]

This thread sucks and so do you. Did Marty fuck your mom or something?

It's not that Kamaru is fucking his mom, it's that he's tight with allowance.

 

[PulsingJones]

Name the "UFC contenders" that the following organizations and events had

Oh, and if you'd like to see the records of his pre-UFC opponents...

• 2-5
• 0-2
• 12-5
• 4-3
• 0-1
• 13-2
• 12-3
• 31-11
• 9-11
• 5-3
• 13-13
• 2-5
• 3-6
• 8-4
• 8-5
• 41-38

163-118 I think. A 58% winning percentage. If that one guy wasn't 31-11, it'd literally be 132-107.

Come on PulsingJones, tell me what UFC contenders ravaged the UFC ranks from Gold Fist Russia?

I'm talking about ACA and BRAVE where Eldar Eldarov and Ali Bagov became Champions in... Y'know, the same orgs that produced the likes of Zabit and Khamzat.

 

[Poatan Power]

No one brought up Goat. We're comparing Usman and Khabib's resume to this point and the quality of opponents usman and Khabib have fought. You're making it another conversation. If you don't want to say he's the goat, I'm not going to argue against that. I will argue that his quality of opponents and win is better than usman's quality of opponents and quality of wins.

Sorry, multiple posters.

Usman and Khabib's quality of opponents in their 5-6 most significant fights are very close to one another.

Usman has defended the title more times already. And probably going to double the amount of defenses Khabib has...

I'm talking about ACA and BRAVE where Eldar Eldarov and Ali Bagov became Champions in... Y'know, the same orgs that produced the likes of Zabit and Khamzat.

"The likes of"

So they produced 2 "contenders" that are the flavor of the last year. Khamzat is 9-0 with 3 UFC fights against who exactly?

Zabit fought when, again? What year was it?

that doesn't change the fact that Khabib's first 16 fights were against almost entirely 100% truck drivers and Shabib PhantomPunchLossamenov with the record which I posted above. 58% winning percentage for their careers.

PS: For reference, GSP's opponents winning percentage (career) was 73%.

 

[kenetics]

- Hugged and Layed on top of Woodley (who lost all his next fights) for 5 rounds to earn the belt

- Went to a life and death war with Colby and barely managed to win at the last second, stoppage was questionable also.

- Got Journeyman Jorge on a short notice and hugged him for 5 rounds.

- Got LW reject Gllbert Bums who managed to drop him, but it was a decent win.

- Gave Journeyman Jorge another unearned free title shot just so he could pad his record with an extra defense, cool KO though



He's obviously a great fighter and possibly current P4P king, but people are trolling when they compare his reign to Khabib, right? He beat the elite of the elite and made it look effortless. All of Khabib's opponents where ranked in P4P list... Meanwhile Usman is fighting Journeymen.. Not his fault though, current WW is just sad.

He broke Colby jaw ... Even if you thought the fight was stopped early he would've probably finished after he dropped him.

I like Khabib but usman might be ahead of him because he fights in a heavier weight class.

 

[King in the North]

Trash thread with terrible assessments of his fights. Weird GSP fan or possibly Khabib fan. Sensitive boys.

 

[Peli]

Sorry, multiple posters.

Usman and Khabib's quality of opponents in their 5-6 most significant fights are very close to one another.

Usman has defended the title more times already. And probably going to double the amount of defenses Khabib has...

That goat post was another thread. This thread has to do with usman and Khabib.

Couldn't disagree more about quality of opponents. If Usman was fighting former Elite LWs turned WWs, maybe.

I don't think anyone can mistake Gilbert Burns, Covington, or Masvidal as the best fighter in the UFC.

When Usman loses eventually, people are going to spin the narrative on him and make the same points this thread is making now. If he loses, he will lose to a lesser quality opponent than a LW.

 

[PulsingJones]

Sorry, multiple posters.

Usman and Khabib's quality of opponents in their 5-6 most significant fights are very close to one another.

Usman has defended the title more times already. And probably going to double the amount of defenses Khabib has...



"The likes of"

So they produced 2 "contenders" that are the flavor of the last year. Khamzat is 9-0 with 3 UFC fights against who exactly?

Zabit fought when, again? What year was it?

that doesn't change the fact that Khabib's first 16 fights were against almost entirely 100% truck drivers and Shabib PhantomPunchLossamenov with the record which I posted above. 58% winning percentage for their careers.

First you claim Khabib's pre-UFC opponents were all cans, and after I prove you wrong you start averaging his other opponents W/L records.
Typical goalpost shifting from Khabib haters.

Absolutely disgraceful

 

[Poatan Power]

That goat post was another thread. This thread has to do with usman and Khabib.

Couldn't disagree more about quality of opponents. If Usman was fighting former Elite LWs turned WWs, maybe.

I don't think anyone can mistake Gilbert Burns, Covington, or Masvidal as the best fighter in the UFC.

Poirier
Gaethje
McGregor
Al laquinta
Barboza
RDA

vs

Masvidal (x2)
Colby (maybe x2?)
Tyron
Burns
RDA
Maia
Edwards 2015?

I guess I agree. Begrudgingly.

Usman isn't done, though. I guess we'll see what he ends up with

First you claim Khabib's pre-UFC opponents were all cans, and after I prove you wrong you start averaging his other opponents W/L records.
Typical goalpost shifting from Khabib haters.

Absolutely disgraceful

You proved me wrong by naming 2 opponents who went on to become champions in regional organizations that produced a couple of flavor of the week fighters that have accomplished nothing yet?

Let's say I concede that they weren't cans (I don't), but you literally named 2 opponents out of 16. Because what, a dude won a Bellator tournament that changes the fact that Khabib's pre-UFC competition averaged a record of, let's say, 15-11?

Over half of Khabib's career is what most fighters do for 3-4 fights nowadays. Usman fought the regional scene for 5-6 fights before getting into the UFC. Khabib did it for well over a dozen fights and within a year of coming to the UFC started missing weight and getting injured. Wonder what changed once he came to the UFC that he could cut weight and couldn't stay healthy?

Must have been the quality of opponents