5 UFC fighters who came the closest to beating Jon Jones
Even if former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones never fights in the promotion again, he will go down as one of the greatest of all time.
Jon Jones has only one loss on his record, which came against Matt Hamill in December 2009 via disqualification due to illegal elbows. UFC president Dana White has often said that the loss should be overturned to a no-contest, since Hamill was being pieced apart by 'Bones' before the stoppage.
Jon Jones also has an NC on his record, which he received after failing drug tests following his rematch against Daniel Cormier. The rest of his record is spotless, although it must be said that there have been a few contentious decisions along the way.
Here are the five UFC fighters who came the closest to beating Jon Jones. Note: Hamill's win has been excluded for obvious reasons.
#5 Chael Sonnen - faced Jon Jones at UFC 159
Technically, Chael Sonnen didn't really come close to beating Jon Jones because of his fighting ability. 'The American Gangster' faced off against Jones at UFC 159, where he lost via first-round knockout.
However, had Sonnen survived the first round, he would've probably been awarded the win via doctor stoppage. Jones had gotten his big toe stuck in the cage during the first round's grappling exchanges, leading to a nasty injury, and might not have been deemed fit to continue.
It wouldn't have been a legitimate win in the conventional sense of the word, but it would've been a win nonetheless. Jones pointed out the same earlier this year when he engaged in an ugly, now-deleted Twitter spat with Sonnen.