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Trading Shots: Is Tony Ferguson missing his last best chance, or learning from past experience?

What is going on in the UFC lightweight division, and did Tony Ferguson make the right call by essentially opting out of the interim rat race? Retired UFC and WEC fighter Danny Downes joins MMAjunkie columnist Ben Fowlkes to discuss in this week’s Trading Shots.

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Fowlkes: Don’t look now, Danny, but there’s an interim title smorgasbord planned for UFC 236 in April.

First we heard that Israel Adesanya and Kelvin Gastelum would fight for the UFC’s interim middleweight title, which, sure, that makes sense. Robert Whittaker is still trying to get his insides right, who knows how long he’ll be out, might as well clear up the question of who’s first in line in the meantime.

But the UFC wasn’t done. It also added a rematch between current featherweight champion Max Holloway and lightweight contender Dustin Poirier to the card. And just to confuse us further, they’ll be fighting for the interim lightweight title, all while top lightweight contender Tony Ferguson continues watching from the sidelines, supposedly of his own volition.

I have many, many questions here, but let’s start with this: What would it mean if Holloway were to win an interim title to go with his real title? Is he then a champ-(interim) champ? Does that interest anyone at all?

Also, what do you make of Khabib Nurmagomedov’s claim that Ferguson should have taken this interim bout rather than waiting for a crack at the real thing? Ferguson’s already been through the interim spin cycle once and came out with nothing to show for it. Can you blame him for wanting a real title fight or nothing?

Downes: At this rate it seems like every division in the UFC will have an interim champ and a “real” champ at the same time. We talked about the middleweight situation a few weeks ago, and my opinion is unchanged. I understand the marketing aspect of it. Interim title fight is more catchy than number one contender fight, but their ubiquity has certainly eroded the value of a championship belt.

It also shows a lack of creativity. Slapping an interim title fight on a card to add interest is the “just add bacon” of the MMA world. It can be nice once in a while, but do we need bacon dental floss?

Along the same lines, the whole champ-champ thing has become blasé in record time. I’m still excited for the fight and look forward to it, but a win for Holloway here doesn’t significantly change the way I view him. He’s an incredibly talented fighter who I enjoy watching. Him becoming a champ-champ in interim fashion doesn’t appear to be some legacy marker.

As far as Ferguson is concerned, he overplayed his hand. He’s out there playing hardball like he’s Conor McGregor when he doesn’t have the same type of leverage. I understand why he didn’t want to do the interim title thing again, but what choice did he have? Nurmagomedov’s return fight isn’t going to be against him if there’s an interim champ running around.

Regardless of who wins between Holloway and Poirier, they’ll definitely get the next shot, right? So now Ferguson’s waiting for the winner of that fight. Plus, given Nurmagomedov’s negotiating tactics as of late, who knows how long that wait could be?

Do you think Ferguson played himself? Turning down title shots isn’t exactly a recipe for success.

‘That’s not who I am’: Igor Severino apologizes for bite, hopes one mistake doesn’t define career

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