Except they weren't better fighters when I made the statement. They got better over time. It would be like UFC 1 Gracie coming to mma now. He'd be exposed as entirely one dimensional. Doesn't mean he wasn't the very best at a time when different circumstances existed. That's life.
Iirc, the only time Pettis was well and truly exposed was by Guida. Which is funny, because he's never been anywhere near a belt, but has beaten more future and former champions than anyone.
Mma isn't some static sport where the best fighter is always going to win. Shit happens. The only real exposure that takes place is that people are human and that without a ref to stop it, even the best athlete or martial artist can be killed in battle.
Mma exposes everyone, in that regard.
MMA is an assortment of arts that counter each other. You're right, the best MMA fighter isn't going to always win. Either because of mistakes that wouldn't be normally made, or just plain not matching up well.
However, that's obviously not Pettis problem. He hasn't lost once. Not even twice. Not even three times now. It's not just been against wrestlers either, and not just once either.
The dude was overrated, no other way about it. I can understanding sitting there and saying to yourself that there is nobody at the top currently that could beat him with the current skillset that they have, but any reasonable person should've known the wave of MMA that's coming. It's still coming.
Take for example, Conor. He's a great fighter. I think it's possible he could beat everyone at LW, albeit very difficult considering just how many guys there are. If he did do it, I would think even his biggest of haters would agree he's at least the LW GOAT and in consideration for being the GOAT. I certainly would, but I also would tell you that the man's luck is running out and is about get his ass beat by a new generation of fighter.
That's the point. MMA is not boxing. It's a very new sport, that is even more complex. The guys of tomorrow are going to be better than today, just like the guys today are better than the guys of Pettis era. It's been constantly evolving and still is, and that's what you should've accounted for when nobody would beat down Pettis.