UFC 232: Jon Jones the GOAT? His 's**t don't count!' – Daniel Cormier coach EXCLUSIVE

New York native Jones will set foot inside the cage for the first time in 17 months in the main event of UFC 232.

Thirty-one-year-old Jones will be welcomed back to the fold by his old foe Alexander Gustafsson, whom he’ll face for the light-heavyweight title he twice held.

The 205lbs title is currently in possession of Jones’ bitter rival Daniel Cormier, who will be stripped of his title the moment a punch is thrown on Saturday night.

As Jones vs Gustafsson II draws ever closer, the scrutiny and debate over the former’s legacy in the sport intensifies.

Before, and moments after, his second encounter with Cormier at UFC 214 – which he won via devastating third round KO – Jones was considered by many to be the greatest mixed martial artist of all time.

However, his claim to that title took a monumental hit a month after his win over ‘DC’ – which saw him reclaim the light-heavyweight crown – as it emerged that he’d failed his final pre-fight drug test, which came back positive for trace amounts of the banned anabolic steroid Turanibol.

Jones was immediately stripped of the 205lbs belt – which was handed back to Cormier – and received a 15-month retroactive suspension for his second doping violation.

During Jones’ hiatus, Cormier defended the light-heavyweight crown and dethroned dominant heavyweight champion to become only the second fighter in UFC history to hold two titles simultaneously.

Cormier’s momentous achievement saw him stake a serious claim for the ‘greatest of all time’ title, and understandably so.

Unsurprisingly, the Louisana native’s head coach Javier Mendez believes the 39-year-old is the best fighter to have ever competed in mixed martial arts.

That belief stems from his flawless record at heavyweight and that fact his sole losses have come at the hands of Jones, who has twice tested positive for prohibited substances.

“For me, he’s pound-for-pound the greatest of all time,” Mendez said of Cormier during a recent chat with Express Sport. “Because he’s defended the heavyweight title, he’s never lost a round in the heavyweight division.

“He’s 15-0. And his two lone defeats are to someone who has an asterisk behind him.”

Like many others, Mendez believes Jones’ two anti-doping violations – the first of which occurred after he ingested a tainted sexual-enhancement pill – have ruled him out of the GOAT conversation and rendered his victories over Cormier null and void.

“Do they really count?” Mendez asked. “In the history books, does Lance Armstrong really have seven Tour de France’s or does he have none? No. So that’s all I’m saying.

“There’s really not much more for me to say on that because so many time people have done things. And that s**t don’t count. No matter what you say.”

The 15-month retroactive suspension Jones received from the United States Anti-Doping Agency – which came via an independent arbitrator – was questioned by many, especially as Jones was initially staring down the barrel of a four-year ban.

“I’m losing faith in their ability to make our sport the way it’s supposed to be,” Mendez said. “So let’s put it that way.

“Why is Daniel Cormier getting tested so goddamn much? It’s like Daniel says, ‘Why even bother coming to my house?’

“The way I look at it, why even bother going anywhere? For me, they ruin more shows than they’ve helped shows.”

Ahead of arguably the biggest fight of his career, Jones ran into yet another anti-doping issue due to an abnormality with his out-of-competition drug test on December 9, which detected trace amounts Turanibol.

After ‘consulting with leading scientific experts’, USADA  came to the conclusion that the prohibited agent was ‘consistent with residual amount’ of the steroid found in Jones’ final UFC 214 pre-fight drug test and opted not to sanction him.

The abnormality prompted the Nevada State Athletic Commission to refuse to license Jones to compete in the state and led the UFC brass to move UFC 232, which was due to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas to the Forum in Los Angeles