Conor McGregor has always been vocal about his intent to be the first fighter in history to simultaneously hold two belts at the same time. On November 12th at Madison Square Garden in New York City, he will have the chance to do so when he fights for Eddie Alvarez’s world lightweight title.
But according to UFC president Dana White, “The Notorious” would need to give up one of the titles, should he end up as the victor after UFC 205.
“If he wins, he’ll hold two belts. Then he’ll decide which one he wants to give back to me,” White said. “He can’t hold both. He’ll have accomplished this. Then he’ll have to figure out which one he wants to give up. He can’t hold up two divisions.”
While there have been two-weight world champions in the UFC, no one has ever done what McGregor intends to do. Which is why for former UFC veteran Chael Sonnen, the company should at least relish the moment before making any move afterwards.
“I can’t believe that people don’t understand this that are in the industry. There is a historic opportunity if Conor should beat Eddie Alvarez,” Sonnen said during the recent episode of his “You’re Welcome” podcast (via Forbes.com). “The opportunity there is that he will be the first guy in history to hold two world championships simultaneously in the UFC. It has never happened before.”
“So if you’re the UFC and you, through the power of the pen, take one of those belts away, you also lose the opportunity that so much media is running with to have the historic evening. If you wait to strip him or make a decision in that weight class after the fight, you preserve that opportunity.”
