For UFC president Dana White, the there is a wide range of names that merit being the "pound-for-pound best fighter" on the planet.
On some cases, it was 145-pound champion Jose Aldo. Other times, it was Jon Jones. Most recently, it was Cain Velasquez. Now, in the eve of the lightweight title showdown between champion Anthony Pettis and challenger Gilbert Melendez, White believes "Showtime" is a perfect fit for the description.
The UFC executive went on to explain his statement in an interview with Jim Rome.
"Honestly, I think Pettis is the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, if the kid could stay healthy," said the outspoken UFC president. "This kid is able to do things to people that other people can't do. The famous run-off-the-cage kick. He bounces off the cage and hits people with knees."
To White's credit, Pettis' acrobatics and highly unorthodox striking methods is worthy enough to earn him such an accolade. The "Showtime kick", wherein he used the cage wall to ricochet himself and land a right roundhouse kick to then WEC champion Benson Henderson's face is still in the on-going highlight reels of mixed martial arts.
Not to mention, Pettis has already faced the toughest the UFC can offer, from Donald Cerrone, Clay Guida, Joe Lauzon, and of course, former 155-pound king Benson Henderson, whom he again won the title from. He is definitely no fluke of a champion.
The only problem, though, is that Pettis has been an absentee champion. His last fight with Henderson happened in August 2013. Since then, he has been sidelined by a number of injuries, providing what seemed to be a power vacuum within the lightweight division during his absence.
On Saturday, Pettis makes his comeback against tough as nails fighter Gilbert "El Niño" Melendez. As the former Strikeforce lightweight champion, Melendez can be problematic for Pettis, who has yet to be tested as a champion and as a fighter, as well. It should be noted that "Showtime" has not yet gone through a five rounds of hell like Melendez did when he faced another gritty fighter in Diego Sanchez.
But as an overall judgment, Pettis is definitely up there, within the ranks of today's greats. He is the champion, and he needs to be respected.
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