Frankie Edgar knows that the title he’ll fight for against Jose Aldo at UFC 200 doesn’t have a whole lot of value, but he’s unsure that Conor McGregor will ever come back down to defend his belt.
Nobody likes interim titles. Some fans, fighters, and pundits may call for them for the sake of divisional health, just to keep the appearance that something is happening in a weight class with an absentee title holder, but nobody likes it. Frankie Edgar doesn’t sound like he feels any different as he spoke to Fox Sports about his planned interim title fight against Jose Aldo in the co-main event of UFC 200.
“Let’s just call it the No. 1 contender belt cause that’s what it really is,” Edgar said. “But I’ll play the game. They did it for Conor, they gave him a belt and if I’ve got to play the whole Conor game to make sure I get this fight, I’m OK with it.”
And while Aldo and Edgar may just be battling to decide the true no. 1 contender, there’s a chance the stakes could be a lot higher in the long run. As Edgar sees it, there’s a good chance that McGregor never returns to 145 at all, win or lose to Nate Diaz.
“I don’t know. I don’t think so,” Edgar said about McGregor returning to featherweight. “I don’t know if a win will make him come back, maybe a loss he’d have to come back. Two losses in a row that’s supposedly up two weight classes — it’s 155-pounders not wanting to cut weight is what it really is. He’ll lose a lot of that value I think.
“The more losses you tack on — you’re going to have a champion come back after a two-loss stint up a weight class? It just doesn’t all add up to me.”
And there’s no reason to think that might not be the long play here. With a win over Diaz, does Conor shoot the moon and go for a title shot at 170? Or even on a loss does he decide to try and work for the lightweight belt. If he’s not cut out for a longterm career at 145, then a few big super fights with the title around his waist, might be his way of stepping out. Of course, he could also just drop back down win or lose, and he’d still be the most popular featherweight champion in promotional history. So, there’s always that.