There was a lot of talk over 2018 about the possibility of a new 165 pound weight class in the UFC, largely fueled by the logjam at the top of the 155 pound division. It took Conor McGregor just under two years to defend his title for the first time against Khabib Nurmagomedov, and then Khabib getting suspended guaranteed the snarl wasn’t getting sorted any time soon.
But while the idea had a ton of support from fans and fighters, one person who never wavered in his dislike of the idea was UFC president Dana White. In a new podcast interview with Barstool Sports’ Robbie Fox, White delved into his problem with the idea and why it wouldn’t happen on his watch.
”Not in the next seven years, that I promise,” he said when asked if it was a future possibility. “I’m here for seven more years, when I go they can make a 180, 165, 122, whatever they wanna do when I’m gone, they can do. It ain’t happening while I’m here. What’s the appeal in it?”
”A lot of guys who know they can’t win at either 170 or 155 that would all jump ship. If you look at our 170 and 155 division, they’re stacked. You’ve got Usman, Woodley, Covington, Wonderboy, RDA, Masvidal, Askren, Till, Ponzinibbio, Lawler, Edwards. That’s 170. Lightweights at 155 you got Khabib, Conor, Tony, Poirier, Iaquinta, Kevin Lee who’s moving over to welterweight to make it even better, Edson Barboza, Gaethje, Pettis now is over in the welterweight division which makes it even better. Cerrone, Felder, Gillespie, Diaz.”
”You build a 165 pound division, you completely drain both of those divisions,” White concluded. “It ain’t happening while I’m here. These divisions are stacked, we’ve got tons of great fights in both divisions. We don’t need a 165 pound division.”
While there’s certainly a slight possibility that this may end up being another women’s divisions situation where White’s ‘never’ declarations are reversed, he seems pretty set on the subject. So for those of you hoping for more divisions, we hope you’re patient because seven years is a long time to wait.