Hypothetical: What would be your reaction if Poatan gets a third belt, but it's the interim?

[Dr. Rose]

I don't knock the interim promotion process, but if someone is going to, I expect their logic to remain consistent. Ronda's division didn't exist, sure, but neither did fly or straw, and the promotion could have had a tournament or at least one crowning fight first, so if someone's gonna shit on being gifted the belt, I'll point out she was too.


My point here is more like:

Usually a double champs really only establishes themselves at the top of one division, then get a shortcut to gold in another division, and that's just an accolade and don't go on to prove they're actually the top of it. If they have defenses, it's usually in the division they climbed.

Poatan, on the other hand, has been building defenses and establishing himself in the division he got the "shortcut" to, so it wasn't just a cheat. And even if he didn't defend at MW, he did climb to the top of it, so there's no question of his legitimacy there.

All double champs have different size mountains they staked their flags on, but only really Nunes can argue they truly climbed both mountains they flagged

Thanks for the clarification, my friend.

 

[MDoza]

Beating any top 5 guy at HW would be impressive

 

[Mmmmmmma1234]

I've never been one to hate on interim titles. They are done in undisputes champions absence that guy IS reigning champion, until the (un)disputed champion beats him down.

The UFC how ever has treated interim champions like garbage, stripping guys like Tony and colby without thier opportunity to unify, letting healty undisputed champs have fights with random contenders instead of unification bouts. So i can see why fans shit on it too.

3 div champion Chama! If it happens.

 

[FreedomCricket]

I'm a fan of Poatan so I 100% want to see him fight for the heavyweight title. That being said, I don't think I would fight for an interim HW belt.

In terms of 3 division champ with only the interim, I'd say overall no, but since HW is so shallow it would also depend a tiny bit on circumstances.

 

[7 others]

For me.. specifically we have to see why is there an interim title. For this case, maybe Tom is gonna be out for a long time due to an eye poke. Which imo is legit for Alex to be called a 3 div champ

 

[Oz.Pride]

I like Alex, therefore the interim would be legit

This is the way.

 

[Hdfi]

Aspinall will be ready to fight soon. There's no reason to create an interim title.

 

[Aluminati]

I would put him up there with GSP , Fedor , Jon , Anderson and Mighty Mouse

I suppose. He did get starched by a MW after all...

 

[HHJ]

Pointless to go for interim.

Got to be for all the marbles or nothing at all

 

[Mohawk Banditó]

Aspinall will be ready to fight soon. There's no reason to create an interim title.

Oh agreed, but this was just a thought experiment about the low perceived worth of interims vs the high perceived worth of the first ever three division champ, and he'd be the closest example.

Also, I figured I'd use a fighter everyone liked too, because I'm sure if I asked what everyone would think of Islam winning an interim MW title, the responses would have been very different.

 

[JKS]

He needs the real HW belt to make history. But an interim is still an accomplishment in a way.

 

[Alpha_T83]

If he beats Jon Jones to do it, it's better than any other heavyweight belt anyone has ever won.

Jones and Pereira are the same age, and Pereira has also been fighting in MMA & kickboxing forever.

 

[L0ki]

I count the interim as a belt, fo sho.

There's actually cases where Interim meant more than the actual belt (Barao actively defending against all comers while Dom was sidelined).

That said, it wouldn't mean much unless he beats someone significant.

It should weigh more heavy who a person beats than focusing on belts.

There's no one in the UFC HW division that looks like a world beater.