Alexander Volkanovski and Chan Sung Jung will battle for the UFC featherweight championship this Saturday at UFC 273 in Jacksonville, Fla., but should the winner be called the unequivocal best 145-pound fighter on the planet?
Volkanovski’s run in the sport is undeniably strong, with a 23-1 record and wins over big-name featherweights such as Jose Aldo, Max Holloway, Brian Ortega, and Chad Mendes.
But Patricio Pitbull — the No. 6 featherweight in MMA Fighting’s Global Rankings and one of the greatest competitors to ever enter the Bellator cage — is set to make his own attempt to reclaim his spot near the top of the 145-pound class when he rematches A.J. McKee one week later on April 15, when Bellator 277 lands in San Jose, Calif. According to McKee, the controversy over who is the featherweight king or best in any weight category will end once UFC President Dana White accepts cross promotion.
“I think that’s the next step in MMA, one other promotions have already taken,” Pitbull said on this week’s episode of MMA Fighting’s Portuguese-language podcast Trocacao Franca. RIZIN has also taken the same step as Bellator. Maybe Bellator against PFL [next].
“I wish the UFC would join as well, because we know there’s [that debate], who’s the best one, the UFC or the Bellator [champion]? What matters most is not who I believe wins. It’s who wins. So, to be sure, we have to put the champions [in a position] to fight each other. To me, that’s the next step we have to take in MMA.”
The last time the UFC agreed to lend a star to another MMA promotion to compete was in 2003, when future light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell joined the Pride FC grand prix in Japan. The Iceman stopped Alistair Overeem, but Quinton “Rampage”, Jackson defeated him three months later. He was then eliminated from Pride FC’s tournament field. Liddell ultimately returned to the UFC and eventually won that promotion’s belt.
“When Pride was the MMA giant, [White] risked his fighters to fight there and do a cross promotion,” Pitbull said. “Now that he has this monopoly of the bigger promotion, he’s afraid that his champion will go there for a superfight like this and end up losing and taking away that credibility and name they have.”
Pitbull sees these opportunities as inevitable. Even if White never agrees to partnering with another MMA company, Pitbull believes fans will get a chance to watch top UFC stars clash with names from other promotions once more and more choose to test free agency.
“You’re seeing a big [exodus] of fighters [from the UFC],” he said. Francis [Ngannou],, the heavyweight champion is talking about his desire to leave because of lack of funds. [Henry] Cejudo has stopped [fighting] due to money. Many fighters are migrating to other organizations because of that, so it’s a matter of time.”
A former two-division champion in Bellator, Pitbull would love to test himself against a champion from another promotion in the future, but he needs to avenge his defeat to McKee first. Driven by challenges, the Brazilian doesn’t rule out competing in a different weight class again — this time at bantamweight, if offered an interesting opponent.
Sergio Pettis, the 135-pound champion in Bellator, isn’t a name that “motivates” him right now, Pitbull said. Also, with teammates Leandro Higo and Matheus Mattos looking to climb that bantamweight mountain, he doesn’t feel the fire to cut extra 10 pounds.
“It depends on the challenge,” Pitbull said. “If it’s a fight that excites me, I’d do it. If it doesn’t make sense for me at the moment, then I won’t do it. I am short but I’m strong and compact. I’m stronger that the norm at featherweight. You could say I’m a ‘Toquinho’ [Rousimar Palhares] of 145 in terms of body type. We are a type of person who has a lot to offer. They have lots of muscles, legs and strong upper bodies, so it can be difficult to shed muscle and get into that same weight.
“My [weight class] is 145, really. If there’s a great challenge at 155 or 135, we’ll do it. But until then, my division remains the same. A.J. is my focus. McKee and bringing that belt back.”
