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Fans looking up the UFC’s official records page, are bound to come across the name Jim Miller more than a few times. He has the most fights and wins in UFC history, two records he added to last weekend when he beat short-notice opponent Jesse Butler at a Fight Night card from Las Vegas, Nevada.
He also has the second-most finishes in promotion history, second-most submission wins, fifth-most Fight Night bonuses, and sixth-most total fight time (six hours and 43 minutes!). That’s a lot of accomplishments, but it might not be enough to get him into the UFC Hall of Fame—at least that’s what former two-division champ Daniel Cormier seems to think.
Cormier: ‘Time served’ doesn’t make you a Hall of Famer
On a recent episode of the talk show “DC & RC,”—which Cormier co-hosts alongside former NFL player Ryan Clark—Cormier explained that his criteria for making it into the UFC Hall of Fame don’t match with what Miller has accomplished over the past decade-and-a-half.
“I don’t feel like time served immediately puts you in the Hall of Fame,” Cormier told co-host Clark. “He’s got more wins than anyone else. I love Jim Miller and this makes it hard for me, but I just don’t feel that time served puts you in the Hall of Fame. [Clark,] there’s an offensive lineman in the NFL right now that played 20 years. Does that guy go into the Hall of Fame just because he played 20 years? Doesn’t work that way, RC.”
Most members of the “Modern” or “Pioneers” wing of the UFC Hall of Fame include fighters that either won UFC tournaments or championships. In fact, up until this year, the sole non-UFC Champion in the “Modern Wing” was Urijah Faber, who had a long-time bantamweight reign in WEC.
But things will change this year, as Donald Cerrone will join the UFC Hall of Fame. Cerrone had never earned a title during his UFC run but had a lengthy career that was full of fan-friendly brawls. His induction opened a discussion about what it takes to join the UFC Hall of Fame. In March, Jonathan Snowden wrote an article making the case against Cerrone’s induction: “He’s a Hall of Good fighter. He’s a Hall of Fun fighter. But he doesn’t belong among the true elites,” he wrote.
The case for Jim Miller’s induction
Cormier’s co-host, Clark, was willing to try arguing the opposite of Cormier. He pushed back on the NFL comparison, noting that UFC’s history is much shorter than other sports, and thus the criteria for an induction might be different.
“The one thing about the UFC, with it being new as an organization, is that there are so many ways I think people are going to get into the Hall of Fame,” Clark said. “I believe that Jim Miller will [be inducted] based on his amount of fights and his amount of wins, and the dude still has knockout power, which we saw Saturday.”
Hall of Fame talk? Miller isn’t even done!
Whether or not Miller is Hall of Fame material is up for debate. It’s worth noting, however, that the final chapter in Miller’s career has not been written yet. At 39 years old, he is still competing frequently as a lightweight in the UFC. He enjoyed a three-fight winning streak from 2021 to 2022, including a victory over the aforementioned Cerrone at UFC 276.
That streak was broken earlier this year by Alexander Hernandez, who beat him on scorecards. Since Miller just fought a few days ago, you will have to wait a while before you hear when and who appearance number 43 will be against. But if things go like they usually do for Miller, you won’t have to wait long.
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