Pound-for-pound (commonly abbreviated as P4P) is a term widely recognized within the sports ecosystem, especially in combat sports like boxing, mixed martial arts (MMA), and kickboxing. The phrase refers to an evaluative concept used to compare athletes’ skill levels, accomplishments, and dominance relative to their weight or size. In a casual context, P4P can mean best relative to size or weight. A pound-for-pound athlete stands out for their skill, technique, dominance, and adaptability. These traits make them exceptional irrespective of their size or weight.
P4P rankings evaluate athletes’ performances and hypothetical competitiveness across divisions. Pound-for-pound rankings are determined by sports analysts, governing bodies, or organizations like The Ring Magazine, ESPN, and UFC. Pound-for-pound strength refers to the strength an individual demonstrates relative to their body weight. The term pound for pound beat refers to a victory or achievement considered outstanding when comparing the skill levels of competitors across different weight classes.
Pound-for-pound rankings consider factors like skill level, dominance, quality of opposition, and recent performances.
The concept of pound-for-pound rankings gained prominence in boxing during the early 20th century. It is often associated with sports icon Sugar Ray Robinson, who was regarded as the finest boxer of his era regardless of weight class. The term was coined to reflect his unparalleled talent, with many analysts imagining Robinson as unbeatable if he were a heavyweight.
Boxing legends like Muhammad Ali, often referred to as the GOAT (Greatest of All Time), have acknowledged Robinson’s influence. Ali himself said, “That man was beautiful. Timing, speed, reflexes, rhythm, his body, everything was beautiful.
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The hypegenic appeal of the pound-for-pound concept has evolved significantly. Originally, it served as a way to compare fighters across divisions in boxing. The Ring Magazine, which began publishing such rankings in 1989, remains a respected authority in this domain.
For instance, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, two modern boxing greats, frequently dominated pound-for-pound rankings during their careers. Their legendary rivalry not only defined an era but also added to the excitement of pound-for-pound discussions. The UFC popularized pound-for-pound rankings in MMA, with fighters like Jon Jones, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Israel Adesanya frequently leading the charts. Organizations like ONE Championship have adopted pound-for-pound rankings for kickboxing and Muay Thai.
Although rooted in combat sports, the term pound-for-pound has permeated other sports. In basketball, Allen Iverson, was not also a Human Higlight Reel, but is often considered one of the best pound-for-pound basketball players.
The pound-for-pound debate has transcended its origins, becoming a staple of sports discussions. By comparing athletes from different divisions and even different eras, it fosters dialogue about what constitutes greatness in sports. As the sports ecosystem continues to evolve, the concept of pound-for-pound ensures that talent, not size, remains the ultimate measure of excellence.
While interviewing a member of the UFC roster as part of The Athletic’s inaugural MMA Fighter Survey, one of our writers asked a two-part question: “Who is the best pound-for-pound fighter in MMA today - and who do you think is the greatest of all time?”A lengthy pause followed. Then the fighter audibly sighed. When he finally spoke, he clearly didn’t like the answer he had to give.
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“Jon Jones and Jon Jones,” the fighter said, “even though I fucking hate him.” Then, he groaned. That’s how much this particular answer pained him to give.
The fighter wasn’t alone in this response, or in the underlying sentiment. As The Athletic’s MMA staff surveyed 170 fighters this year, we found a clear - but sometimes reluctant - opinion that the UFC’s longstanding light heavyweight champion is still the best pound-for-pound fighter in the sport.
“I don’t want to say Jon Jones,” another UFC fighter with a chuckle said, “but it’s Jon Jones.”
Fighters who took part in the survey represented a wide array of promotions, age groups, experience levels and countries. Athletes - who participated under the condition of anonymity - were asked questions on a number of topics in the MMA world. When it came to the current pound-for-pound best, 32-year-old Jones was the runaway top choice, garnering 37.6 percent of the vote. Even as some of his peers did it through gritted teeth, Jones amassed double the number of total votes as his nearest runner-up: UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, who got 18.8 percent.
The survey was completed before Jones recently said on social media he’d vacate the title and sit out amid a dispute over pay with the UFC.
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As far as greatest of all time, most fighters gave former UFC welterweight and middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre the top spot with 35.7 percent of the vote. After going 25-2 and successfully defending the 170-pound title nine times during two reigns from 2007-2013, St-Pierre shored up his all-time-great status by returning to defeat Michael Bisping for the 185-pound title at UFC 217 in November 2017.Jones, however, sat comfortably in second place, with 22.2 percent of fighters tabbing him as GOAT. Jones also still has a number of years left to continue to improve his resume. Unless he sits out for an extended stretch during his current beef with management - or further personal transgressions keep him out of the cage - he remains the odds-on favorite to claim consensus greatest of all-time status by the time he retires.
“For me (it’s) St-Pierre or Jon Jones, one of the two,” a Bellator fighter said. “(St-Pierre) beat a lot of tough, renowned guys, and Jon Jones was the same. Does it have to be one? I’m going with St-Pierre. He’s tied with Jon Jones, who beat many 205-pounders with a history, but the tiebreaker that caused (Jones) to lose points with me is that he’s a bum.”
Weirdly, Jones should probably consider it a compliment that so many fellow fighters listed him as either pound-for-pound best or greatest of all time, even though they clearly didn’t want to do it. Jones became the youngest champion in UFC history when he defeated Shogun Rua for the 205-pound title in March 2011. The victory kicked off a run where Jones bested five former UFC champions in a row. In the ensuing years, he’s been separated from the championship only by numerous high-profile incidents of his own misconduct.
He’s been so good in the octagon that other fighters seemed to feel they had no choice but to give him the credit he deserves. On the heels of a pair of fairly close fights with Thiago Santos and Dominick Reyes, he’s still the man to beat.
“I know it’s very controversial, but you can’t argue with his reign,” another Bellator fighter said. “The guy has never been beaten. Even when it seems like he’s been beaten, he wins.”
Despite the current spat with Jones over his pay for a proposed heavyweight fight against Francis Ngannou, UFC President Dana White also couldn’t help but give “Bones” his propers as his GOAT pick during a recent interview.
“There’s no debate, Jon Jones is the GOAT,” White told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto. “Jon Jones is the greatest to ever do it. There’s no debate about it. If you look at what the guy has accomplished - and what he was doing while he accomplished these things. It’s not like the guy was being good to himself and training hardcore (while winning these fights).”
Of course, Jones was far from a unanimous pick as pound-for-pound best. Nurmagomedov, who’s run off a professional record of 28-0 and defeated Conor McGregor in the biggest-selling UFC pay-per-view fight of all time, had his staunch defenders, too.
“I think it’s clearly Khabib,” said a fighter under contract to a European MMA organization. “All these people talking about Justin Gaethje, I think he’d murder him, and he would murder anyone at lightweight and probably welterweight too.”
Others receiving significant votes in the pound-for-pound debate included Demetrious Johnson (12.4 percent), Henry Cejudo (6.5 percent), Amanda Nunes (5.9 percent) and Valentina Shevchenko (4.7 percent).
Some of the liveliest arguments came in favor of Johnson, the former UFC flyweight champion who split with the organization in 2018 and now competes in ONE Championship.
“Like a true champion, his back was always against the wall,” one UFC fighter said of Johnson. “Nobody gave him respect. Everybody shitted on him. That man closed his mouth and went out there and destroyed his whole division. His whole division. For right now, I have to go with ‘Mighty Mouse.’ I like what he did. I like his story.”
Aside from St-Pierre and Jones, others receiving votes as greatest of all time included Anderson Silva (13.5 percent), Johnson (9.4 percent) and Fedor Emelianenko (5.3 percent).
Then there was the curious case of the lone UFC fighter who declined to pick a GOAT or best pound-for-pound fighter in favor of a spirited defense of … the ancients?
“If you think about it, we’re all watered down compared to our ancestors,” the fighter said. “Them motherfuckers were savages. You ever get like a little blister or something on your toe and that shit hurts like a bitch? Then you realize that those guys used to march in like iron shackles for days on end and not even cry about it. You know what I mean? It’s like, those are the real tough sons of bitches.