If Victorious, Conor McGregor Not Giving Up Either UFC Belt Voluntarily
The controversy continues to swirl around Conor McGregor and the UFC featherweight championship wrapped around his waist.
UFC president Dana White on Monday announced that McGregor would challenge Eddie Alvarez for the lightweight title at UFC 205 on Nov. 12 in New York. The surprising move was that White said McGregor would not be required to relinquish his 145-pound title going into the fight, as he had originally said the Irishman would.
On Tuesday, however, White made a slight amendment. If McGregor were to win in New York, he would become the first UFC fighter in history to hold two belts in two separate weight classes simultaneously. White said that if McGregor wins the belt, he will then have to give up one or the other. He won't be allowed to keep both belts.
“He wants to try to gain both belts,” White said on ESPN’s SportsCenter. “He will give up one of the titles after that fight in New York.”
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That was all well and good until McGregor was asked about the prospect of giving up one of the two titles if he's successful at UFC 205.
“I’m gonna wrap one on one shoulder, and I’m gonna wrap the other one on the other shoulder and they’re gonna need a (expletive) army to come take them belts off me,” he said at Tuesday's UFC 205 Kickoff Press Conference at Madison Square Garden.
“They’re gonna have to gather an army to try and take one of them off of me. One's gonna be there and one's gonna be there, and I’m gonna be picking and choosing who I wanna destroy next,” said McGregor, not relenting one iota on the idea of giving up either belt.
While many pundits, and even White, have questioned whether or not McGregor would ever return to the 145-pound division, the Irishman did little to quell such speculation. Even though he doesn't intend on relinquishing the belt, he seems to have little interest in the the division in which he currently holds the title.
“We’ll see what happens with Aldo. It’s hard to even think of him, I KO’d him in 13 seconds,” he said. “I’m gonna let that featherweight division play out and see how it goes.”
The only thing he was adamant about was that he would be walking out of the Octagon on Nov. 12 with two belts over his shoulders.
“I’m the featherweight world champion; now in November, I’m gonna be the lightweight world champion. I’m gonna hold two of them consecutively.”
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