Bas Rutten’s MMA Mount Rushmore is not what most might expect.
UFC president Dana White was recently asked who would be on his MMA Mount Rushmore, and he included Royce Gracie, UFC women’s featherweight and bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Chuck Liddell.
But Rutten’s response was a little different. While he did include a couple expected UFC Hall of Famers, his other two choices were interesting ones.
One person he thought strongly about was White, whom Rutten credits for helping make the UFC what it is today.
“Royce Gracie, 100 percent – he needs to be the first guy,” Rutten told MMA Junkie Radio. “But the guy who made the UFC and made everything big is Dana White. Of course he can’t put himself in. You can say whatever you want to say, but because of him, we all watch it. Because of ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ he came up with that idea and they did everything. People say they want more money. You can say whatever you want. But he’s the hardest working guy.”
Another name he included that might raise some eyebrows is former UFC dual-champ Conor McGregor, arguably the biggest star in the history of sport.
But before you criticize his inclusion of McGregor, let him explain why. Rutten acknowledged that McGregor may not be the most skilled fighter in history, but his impact on the sport can’t be denied.
“Chuck Liddell, but MMA – is it MMA in general? Then you’ve got to go Fedor (Emelianenko), guys like that. How many more eyeballs did Conor McGregor put to MMA? Is he the greatest fighter with the submission losses? No, he’s not. He’s a very good fighter, but just because of what he did and how much attention he brought to MMA, does he deserve to be in it? Everyone is going to go, ‘You’re crazy.’ But really?”
Check out Rutten’s full interview with MMA Junkie Radio below, in which the UFC Hall of Famer discusses Kevin Randleman; Henry Cejudo’s recent retirement; pool and home workouts for fighters stuck at home in the pandemic; his commentating career; his venture into the CBD space with FOCL; and much more.
