It looks like Anthony Pettis will have to forgo his dream of being a two-weight class champion for now, because if he beats Jose Aldo in August, he’s stuck at featherweight for the foreseeable future.
Pettis called for a fight with featherweight champion Jose Aldo following the 145-pound champion’s win over Frankie Edgar at UFC 156 just a few weeks ago.
Technically, Pettis was already in line for a shot at the lightweight championship against the winner of the upcoming UFC on Fox 7 main event bout between Benson Henderson and Gilbert Melendez.
Instead of sitting and waiting for that fight to happen and then the chance to face the winner, Pettis seized the timing of Aldo’s win and asked to face him at featherweight.
The UFC jumped at the chance to make the fight a reality, and after a few bumps in the road last weekend, they made the fight official on Monday with Aldo vs. Pettis now squared away for August 3 with the featherweight title up for grabs.
Prior to the fight being made, however, Pettis had stated he was hoping to face Aldo and then jump back to 155 pounds and still face the winner of Henderson vs. Melendez.
On Tuesday night while appearing on UFC Tonight, president Dana White said that idea won’t work because if Pettis beats Aldo, he will be staying at featherweight to defend the belt.
“If Pettis wins the fight, Pettis is going to have to stay at 145 and defend that belt a couple times, then he can move to 155,” said White.
Another odd caveat thrown into the title fight between Aldo and Pettis is in the scenario that the champion holds on to his belt and defeats the former lightweight contender.
Part of the condition of accepting the fight with Pettis was that if Aldo wins, he could then move to 155 pounds and challenge the champion in that weight class.
Dana White agreed to the move, but says if Aldo moves to lightweight, the same condition applies that he has to stay there and will not be allowed to immediately return to featherweight should he capture the title.
“If (Aldo) moves to 155, he stays at 155 and he holds that belt,” White stated.
So it appears a whole new set of stipulations are in place for the Aldo vs. Pettis fight, and the bout is still more than five months away from taking place.
Damon Martin is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report
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