Jose Aldo has more of a claim to GOAT than Khabib

When he was 5-0 though he fought a guy who is currently an undefeated BRAVE fighter, the fight after that he fought a guy who went on to win a Bellator Season tournament and then after he fought a guy who has gone on to win an ACA LW title, challenge for an ACA WW title. Two fights after fighting that 0-0 fighter at 14-0, Khabib fought Arymarcel Santos at WW who is now today the 183rd ranked LHW in the world. He also won two combat sambo world titles while putting together his 16-0 pre-UFC record.

I have Aldo higher than Khabib on my list of ranked GOATS but Khabib did a lot and people should be honest about what he did in his career because he did more than his detractors say.

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And yet Khabib is still a better, more dominant fighter.

Sure he killed a lot of cans.

But when he faced the McGregor’s, Poirier’s and Gaethje’s, he killed them just as easily if not easier.

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I say they’re too different to compare. I’d personally rather have Khabib’s record than Aldo’s. You know it haunts Aldo getting starched by Conor. Aldo also has a lot of very close fights. It’s amazing what Aldo has accomplished, but he has been beaten up too many times. Both guys are badass.

Thats why I was saying its very difficult to compare GOATS because of all the variables. Sure Aldo has been beatdown a few times but he has spent 14 years at the elite level of the sport while Khabib only did it for 8 years.

14 vs 8.

We will just never know how many times Khabib would have lost like Aldo if Khabib spent another 6 years at the elite level of the sport like Aldo.

Its like GSP, he pretty much retired at 32 like Khabib, of course his record is prettier than Fedor’s record. Fedor is 45, been competing at the highest level of MMA for 20 years, GSP only did that for 9 years and then returned for the Bisping fight.

Its like how do you compare Cruz’s career to Sakuraba’s or Penns? Cruz stayed in his weight class the entire time while Saku and Penn went up one, two, three and sometimes four weight classes to fight anybody in the world while Cruz never gave up 10 lbs. Very different careers among the GOATs.

Cruz is not much smaller than Penn. How do you think Cruz would handle Hughes, GSP, Fitch, Rodrigo Gracie or Machida?

Another main thing that should be included is money. There’s a reason GSP and Khabib retired. They’re both very rich. Aldo is relatively unknown to most casuals. I mean sure they’ve probably heard of him, but they’re not lining up to watch his fights. Popularity as much as people hate to admit is also a factor. Those HUGE ass fights that the whole world watches Khabib wins, Aldo not so much. Just like Usman says everyone wants to see you fight until you lose. Don’t be that guy.

No clue man. BJ is the only one that is crazy enough to try haha On paper I’d say bad. But I honestly have no clue how it would go. Sakuraba should of stayed away from Wand. Imagine prime Wand vs Cruz haha. BJ vs Wand would of been nuts. Fighting is like no other sport. Any of these guys are capable of winning or losing.

I think Cruz would have got trashed if he tried to do anything close to what Penn did. I don’t see Cruz having any luck with top LWs and the WWs would murder him.

Man Sak should have stayed away from Wand, especially after the first fight, those Crocop and Arona fights were not so good for him either. In the weight cutting era, Saku could have competed at WW yet had the balls to fight Igor Vovchanchyn after he had already fought Royce for over an hour. Legend.

Now if you lose it affects your money too much. Rarely you see guys taking risks. Kevin Lee is a prime example. Cherry pick like a mother fucker. Back then it was way different. Dana likes every new champ to be the GOAT. Can’t afford a loss. There’s only a select few that can lose and still get treated as a champion or better. You gotta remember most of these guys fight for money. I’d rather be 20-15 and rich than 20-3 and not be able to retire.

So pad your record like boxing. Gotcha.

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I thinks so too

to be the goat you have to fight through your prime and remain a contender when you’re clearly past your prime

khabib did none of that.

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This

I posted in another thread that Jose was barely 4 years into his pro career and 10-1 when he joined the WEC. His 15th pro fight was against fucking Cub Swanson. He became the WEC champ less than 18 months into his run. Since then, literally all of his opponents have been inside the top 10. Most of them inside the top 5 or top 2. There’s an actual argument for Jose having one of the best resumes of all time. Right up there with some of the old school guys.

Khabib knows nothing about having the belt taken away from you then having to find the motivation to climb back up the mountain, at two separate weight classes. He doesn’t know what it’s like to lose, and then have to come back and prove you’re still the best.

Aldo was the champ (2009) 2 years before Khabib even entered the UFC and was still the champ all the way through 2015. Let that sink in.

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I’m okay with padding records to a certain degree especially early on but with Khabib it was mostly padding. I mean it took Khabib like 3 years to fight a ranked UFC opponent.

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and nobody wanted to watch him fight

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If Ali went through his career in our current generation there’d be a lot less people saying he was the goat. People don’t know how to be rational anymore lol.

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Khabib is 14-0 and fighting a 0-0 fighter.

Aldo is 14-1 and beating Cub Swanson for the WEC Title

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And he’s still competing at the highest of levels. Longevity and fighting various MMA generations should count for way more than it does in the goat discussion. Aldo is up there, above Andy imo and he has always tested clean. Aldos still competing against the best and challenging for a title in another division. Man’s a beast.

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I have to disagree about 8 years at an elite level. I would say when he fought Barbosa is when he started at an elite level and that was a few years ago.

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Thats not really being very objective about the whole thing man saying he only started fighting at the highest level of the sport when he fought Barboza.

Early in his career and early in their careers… sure the Ali Bagov, Shamhalaev and Eldarov and Santos fights would not be said to be the highest level of the sport were everyone is at that moment is in their prime and one of the twenty or forty highest ranked and most skilled and dangerous fighters in their division but the all went on to climb high up the ranks. Bagov won the ACA LW title later, Shamhalaev won a Bellator tournament and Eldarov is an undefeated Brave fighter. The Santos fight happened at WW and the guy is now a top 200 ranked LHW.

By the time Khabib was in the UFC in 2012 he fought Shalorus, Tibau, Tavares, Healy and RDA, thats the highest level of the sport level comp. There is no chance Khabib only started competing at the elite level when he faced Barboza. Do you have any idea how good Healy, Tibau, Tavares, RDA and Johnson were at the time they fought Khabib? Seriously, you guys who hate Khabib are not objective and you try to rewrite history.

Shalorus had a draw with Jamie Varner and beat Bart Palaszewiski right before the Khabib fight.
Healy submitted prime Jim Miller right before he fought Khabib.
Tibau beat Pelligrino, Uno and RDA right before he foght Khabib.
Tavares beat Fisher and Stout right before he fought Khabib.
RDA beat Dunham and Cowboy right before he fought Khibib and beat Bendo and Nate right after before he beat Bendo and won the world title.

Only reason Khabib fought Horcher is because Tony pulled out of the fight with a lung issue. After that Khabib fought Johnson who had already beat Tony, Barboza and just KOed Dustin right before fighting Khabib. Beating Tony, Barboza and Dustin mean anything around here?

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