It’s fair for fight fans to always want a title fight to end with an undisputed champion, but sometimes circumstances get in the way. On 23 different occasions and across eight weight classes, the UFC has decided to let athletes compete for an interim UFC title.
The first time it happened was at UFC 43 back in 2003, and the most recent instance came earlier this year at UFC 284.
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This weekend, the world-famous Octagon lands in Madison Square Garden for UFC 295: Procházka vs Pereira. The event was initially slated to be headlined by UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones and former champion Stipe Miocic, but an injury to Jones took the undisputed heavyweight title bout off the books.
The UFC pivoted and selected top heavyweight contenders Sergei Pavlovich and Tom Aspinall to step in for a shot at the interim UFC heavyweight title. The bout will become the 24th interim UFC belt awarded in promotion history.
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And while we can still hope that Jones-Miocic will happen in 2024, Pavlovich vs Aspinall is yet another incredible interim title fight put together by the UFC.
Let’s take a look back at some of the standout interim UFC title fights that delivered, despite not being for the undisputed belt.
The first interim UFC title bout was a big one and it was between two of the biggest stars in the sport. With UFC light heavyweight Tito Ortiz on the sidelines, former heavyweight champion Randy Couture and the all-powerful Chuck Liddell agreed to compete for interim gold.
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Couture was a heavy underdog entering the bout, but he utilized his well-rounded skill set to tire Liddell out. In the third round, he took “The Iceman” down and used relentless ground-and-pound to become the first UFC athlete to ever hold titles in two different weight classes.
After a back injury forced welterweight champion Matt Serra out of his title fight with Matt Hughes at UFC 79, Georges St-Pierre stepped into the fray. GSP, who had already defeated Hughes just over a year prior, aimed to reclaim his belt after his stunning defeat to Serra.
GSP delivered a trademark performance, submitting Hughes with an armbar at the end of the second round.
There will never be anything like the rise of Conor McGregor.
The Irish superstar was electric in the build-up to his undisputed title bout with the great Jose Aldo, but the champ suffered a rib injury weeks prior to the fight and was forced to pull out. In stepped two-time featherweight title challenger Chad Mendes, who agreed to headline UFC’s annual International Fight Week event versus McGregor.
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This event delivered McGregor’s iconic walkout with the late Sinéad O’Connor performing live at the MGM Grand Garden Arena as “The Notorious” walked to the Octagon. It also delivered one of McGregor’s all-time best performances and marked the first time that he would wrap UFC gold around his waist.
UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping wasn’t available, so the UFC booked two of the top contenders at 185 pounds to fight for the interim belt.
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The Ultimate Fighter winner Robert Whittaker and Cuba’s Yoel Romero collided at T-Mobile Arena for an absolute classic. Romero hurt Whittaker’s knee early on, but Whittaker gutted it out and put on the performance of a true warrior en route to winning a close decision.
There’s a higher than solid chance that you’ve seen or heard something about this legendary fight.
Israel Adesanya and Kelvin Gastelum delivered one of the greatest fights in UFC history at UFC 236.
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The two middleweight contenders agreed to fight for the interim UFC middleweight title after champion Robert Whittaker was forced out of his bout with Gastelum the night before UFC 234.
Back-and-forth they battled for 25 minutes, with each having wild moments and standing toe-to-toe as they left it all in the Octagon. In the end, it was Adesanya who surged in the fifth round and earned the victory via decision.
UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway long said that he wanted to test the waters at lightweight. When the title fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson fell through, the UFC gave Holloway his wish in the form of an interim UFC title fight with contender Dustin Poirier.
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The second craziest thing about this fight is that it happened right after Adesanya and Gastelum’s incredible fight. The actual craziest thing about this fight is the output and the desire that each man had to claim the interim UFC lightweight title.
It was a classic and it was the moment that “The Diamond” was finally paid in full.
UFC 295: Procházka vs Pereira took place live from Madison Square Garden in New York City on November 11, 2023. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
