Dana White’s Clear Stance on Double Champ Status Circles Back as Islam Makhachev Vacates LW Title

Do you remember the days when the UFC ruled over the internet as the ‘The Notorious’ Conor McGregor hoisted not one but the gold of two different divisions simultaneously? He began something that, with time, has become the highest accolade for a fighter trying to rule not just the UFC’s divisions, but the UFC itself. While fighters like Randy Couture, Jon Jones, BJ Penn, and Georges St-Pierre have won belts in two divisions, there is just one list much rarer. And only four fighters have managed to write their names on it.

What Conor McGregor began back at UFC 205 resonated in the UFC roster so wild that in the following years, Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes, and Henry Cejudo joined that list. Now, following the UFC 315 results and what it has led to, the chances of witnessing the next simultaneous double-champ in the UFC seem unlikely. As we all remember, Ilia Topuria had to vacate his featherweight title to be able to compete against Islam Makhachev for the lightweight gold. But Islam Makhachev’s signature was dependent on the outcome of the UFC 315 main event.

After Jack Della Maddalena won against Belal Muhammad, Islam Makhachev announced he would move up to challenge ‘JDM’ for the 170-pound throne. It was the outcome he wanted. Facing Muhammad wasn’t an option for the Dagestani, considering their deep ties through their training together. But now, the road gas cleared up for him to win that second belt.

We have a final date for Ilia Topuria‘s first fight at lightweight as the UFC has kept its promise and given him the lightweight title shot against Charles Oliveira, at UFC 317, International Fight Week. Talking about the issue was UFC featherweight title challenger and the #2 ranked fighter in the division, Diego Lopes, who believes that the fighters don’t voluntarily vacate their belt. Rather, the UFC has made it a policy for champions moving up or down to give up the belt in the division they are vacating, in order to prevent clogging in that division.

“They were very clear to us that they said they are no longer giving a chance to jump from one weight class to another. If you want to move up, you have to vacate the titles. This is what the UFC said has to all the champions who are planning to move up a weight class. They will no longer have the status of double champion simultaneously.”, the Mexican heavy-hitter revealed prior to facing Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 314.

January 18, 2025, Inglewood, California, USA: ISLAM MAKHACHEV 27-1-0 of Makhachkala, Russia defeats RENATO MOICANO 20-6-1 of Brasilia, Federal District, Brazil by submission DÃââ Arce choke at 4:05 of round 1 during UFC 311 at the Intuit Dome, Inglewood, California Inglewood USA – ZUMAo117 20250118_zsp_o117_045 Copyright: xMikaelxOnax

So with that being said, between all the speculations, announcements, and the drama, one has to wonder what the UFC CEO and President Dana White might have to say on the issue. Let’s read further to find out.

Islam Makhachev vacates lightweight belt, Dana White’s stance on ‘double-champ’ resurfaces

After beating the likes of Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway, Topuria had his eyes set on the UFC lightweight gold, but he just had a single defense in his current reign. This reportedly led to ‘El Matador’s decision to vacate the 145-pound gold, after which he was promised by the UFC that he would have his title shot sooner rather than later.

What followed next was months of chaos and drama around this new step by the organisation. However, Dana White cleared the air as he revealed that the champions will be treated on a ‘case-by-case’ basis. He said: “If there’s a guy who thinks he can do it and wants to defend both belts and has accomplished all these great things, I would have no problem with it. But you’re going to be busy.

White further added: ““But no, I’m definitely not [against double champs]. Weili Zhang, they just asked me. She’s accomplished just about everything you can accomplish in her weight division and I don’t have a problem with it. The philosophy hasn’t changed, it’s just on a case by case basis.”

From ‘case-by-case’, it is safe to assume that fighters will be told to vacate the belt or not depending upon the number of defenses in the reign. So Topuria vacating the title made sense. However, Makhachev doesn’t. Within the last three years, Makhachev won the belt against Charles Oliveira and defended it four times straight, becoming the first lightweight ever to do so. Yet he had to leave the belt he so dearly defended, for a new chapter.

So what’s next for the UFC? It’s certainly an interesting era for the organization with incredible displays of high-level fighting sprinkled with new storylines and drama building up each moment. Who will be the next simultaneous double-champ in the UFC? Let us know in the comments.

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