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UFC: Dana White Goes Scorched Earth on Jon Jones' P4P Status: 'You Cannot Deny'

The UFC CEO went ballistic when a reporter pressed him about the idea of Jon Jones vs. Alex Pereira at heavyweight.

Zain Bando

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

In the aftermath of UFC 303, UFC CEO Dana White made his opinion abundantly clear on MMA's pound-for-pound discussion.

UFC 303 News: Alex Pereira Demolishes Jiří Procházka in Short-Notice Main Event

White Responds to Jones vs. Pereira Suggestion

According to the two-decade-plus fight promoter, there is only one right answer when discussing who the best is, even if he hasn't fought in over a year.

UFC: Dana White Goes Scorched Earth on Jon Jones' P4P Status: 'You Cannot Deny'
Feb 15, 2020; Rio Rancho, New Mexico, USA; UFC fighter Jon Jones attends the light heavyweight bout between Jan Blachowicz (blue) and Corey Anderson (red) during UFC Fight Night at Santa Ana Star Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

"This is the problem with the conversation that we're having here and why people aren't giving Jon Jones the respect for pound-for-pound," White said at the UFC 303 post-fight presser Saturday night. "This f******* guy destroyed the best heavyweight in the division. [He] easily made it look like nothing. Jon Jones is the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world and the greatest fighter f****** ever. Period. End of story."

White's rant stemmed from a question presented by longtime MMA journalist Kevin Iole, who posed a question about White's previous desire for marquee super fights (i.e., Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva) and whether or not White felt similarly about a potential heavyweight title fight between Jones and Alex Pereira, who defended his light heavyweight title with a violent KO against Jiri Prochazka in less than two rounds at UFC 303.

While White didn't rule out Jones vs. Pereira from ever happening, he added that he wants to see Pereira beat a few more light heavyweights before moving up to heavyweight. The only issue, however, is that Pereira has beaten nearly every contender except one: Magomed Ankalaev.

Without giving a firm "yes," White essentially confirmed that Ankalaev, who has the longest divisional active streak in the UFC, would get the next shot at the light heavyweight title.

Magomed Ankalaev Takes to 'X' After UFC 303

Ankalaev, who has won 10 out of his 13 UFC contests, quicky took to 'X' (formerly Twitter) to call out Pereira and already help build the highly-anticipated encounter, predicting a knockout against the Brazilian.

At press time, Pereira wants to challenge whoever's next, as the 205-pound division has begun to regain its consistency of yesteryear.

UFC 303: Alex Pereira vs. Jiří Procházka 2 Live Results & Highlights

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Zain Bando
ZAIN BANDO

Zain Bando is a writer for MMA Knockout, part of the Sports Illustrated/Minute Media umbrella. He has covered combat sports since 2019 for notable outlets BJPenn.com and FanSided MMA. He also co-hosts a podcast called "The MMA Outsiders," part of the Empty The Bench Podcast Network, which airs Tuesday nights at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT. A Chicago suburban native, Bando has been enthralled with MMA since 2006 and has been fortunate to attend some of the most high-profile events in the sport's history, both as a fan and media member, including UFC 264, Bellator 297 and Kayla Harrison's PFL MMA debut. He is excited to take the next step in his combat sports writing journey and looks forward to continuing his following of the fight game for years to come. Bando can be reached via email at zainbando99@gmail.com or by social media @zainbando99

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