"Not a fan" - Ex-UFC fighter Kenny Florian opposed to UFC 291 needing 'gimmicky' title
Ex-UFC fighter Kenny Florian recently weighed in on the upcoming UFC 291 main event between Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje for the 'BMF' title and noted that he's not a fan of the title.
During an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA, Florian shared his thoughts on the promotion bringing back the 'BMF' title after previous title holder Jorge Masvidal announced his retirement. The 47-year-old mentioned that he doesn't believe the UFC 291 main event needs the title to make it more meaningful and that he isn't a fan of the concept of it.
He said:
"I'm not a fan of the 'BMF' belt, it's an amazing fight. Let's just leave it at that...Are we saying that other people in the UFC aren't bad mother f'ers?...I don't like those gimmicky things myself. I'm just not a huge fan of those things, but you know, every promotion is gonna do things differently." [11:45 - 12:26]
The former TUF runner-up also brought up that he doesn't agree with how UFC 291 is being marketed because he believes that every elite fighter can make that 'BMF' claim. Florin mentioned that he is looking forward to the highly anticipated rematch rather than the symbolism of the title, saying:
"I'm just not fooled by the marketing of it ['BMF' title]. You know, everyone in the UFC, everyone at an elite level in a mixed martial arts promotion is a bad mother f'er and you don't need a belt to prove it because I don't know, that could go to anybody...I'm looking forward to the fight itself, but not a fan of this 'BMF' belt." [12:46 - 13:10]
It will be interesting to see who wins the rematch at UFC 291 and whether the new 'BMF' title holder will defend the title either in their own weight class or against others in a catchweight bout.
Check out the full interview:
Will the UFC 291 co-main event be a title eliminator?
The UFC 291 light heavyweight co-main event between former champion Jan Blachowicz and former middleweight champion Alex Pereira could possibly have more at stake.
After Jamahal Hill was forced to relinquish the light heavyweight championship due to an injury, the attention then shifted to who will compete for the vacant title. Former champion Jiri Prochazka is expected to return from his shoulder injury, so he could be one of the fighters competing for the vacant title.
With that in mind, should Blachowicz or Pereira make a statement with an impressive and decisive win this Saturday, they could very well insert themselves in a potential vacant title fight against Prochazka.
How do you see Jan Blachowicz vs. Alex Pereira playing out this weekend?🤔
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