"Did we need an interim champion?" - Chael Sonnen questions legitimacy of Ciryl Gane's interim heavyweight title
Chael Sonnen feels that the interim title matchup between Ciryl Gane and Derrick Lewis wasn't necessary. He thinks that the UFC heavyweight division didn't require an interim champ at the time.
According to Sonnen, champions typically are stripped of their titles if they don't compete for over a year. For current heavyweight king Francis Ngannou, that wasn't the case. 'The Predator' became the champion in March last year, whereas the interim title bout took place after only four months.
CIRYL GANE BECOMES THE NEW INTERIM HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION 🤯 #UFC265
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In the latest episode of the Bad Guy Inc podcast, 'The American Gangster' chimed in on the subject:
"Was making the interim championship bout between Derrick Lewis and Ciryl Gane the right thing to do? Did we need an interim champion when we have the undisputed champion in Francis?... [In boxing] if you sat out for any reason for 12 months... you were eligible to be stripped...We followed something very close like that in MMA for a while... the Ciryl fight versus Derrick Lewis was nowhere near a year for Francis [so] did we need an interim champion?"
Check out Sonnen's comments on Gane's interim title belt below:
Francis Ngannou doesn't acknowledge Ciryl Gane as the interim heavyweight champion
Ngannou and Gane are set to collide in a much-anticipated title-unification clash next weekend at UFC 270. The Frenchman is 10-0 in his MMA career and is currently on an impressive seven-fight win streak inside the octagon. However, his opponent doesn't recognize 'Bon Gamin' as a legitimate champion.
Speaking to Megan Olivi, Ngannou said that he was the true king of the heavyweight division and considers the upcoming fight a title defense than a title-unification bout:
"I do not legitimize the interim title at all. As far as I am concerned, that does not exist."
Check out Ngannou's conversation with Megan Olivi below: