Via: www.mmamania.com
What's in a name?
Not much, especially when that name happens to be "interim." It's a title that has routinely meant very little in mixed martial arts (MMA). A fighter is either the champion or he isn't. Yet, fans of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) have had to endure several such charades, in which we were forced to pretend that an interim belt actually meant something.
Such is currently the case in the UFC's welterweight division, as Carlos Condit holds on to the interim belt, which he earned in a hard fought victory over Nick Diaz at UFC 143 in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Feb. 4, 2012, as he waits for current champion Georges St. Pierre to recover from a knee injury that has sidelined him since last December.
"The Natural Born Killer" has been adamant about his desire to stay on the shelf, play it safe, and not take any other fights until he gets the title shot he feels he deserves...until now, that is.
Condit was recently interviewed by HDNet's "Inside MMA," where he discussed his plans for the future. By the sound of it, the interim champion may be coming around to the idea of taking another fight, while he waits for the return of "GSP."
"If it turns out Georges can't fight in November, most likely, I will fight somebody else. I really wanna fight Georges. I really wanna unify the belts, but there's also some other guys that I would like to fight as well. You know, Martin Kampmann's the only guy that I've lost to in the UFC, the only guy I've lost to in about the last six years, so I would definitely like to avenge that loss."
Those were the comments made by Condit to "Inside MMA's" Ron Kruck. Apparently, he's not over his only loss in the Octagon, and who can blame him?
Fans will remember Kampmann as the big winner from last weekend's (June 1, 2012) main event at The Ultimate Fighter Live Finale in "Sin City," as he mounted a big comeback win and knocked out Jake Ellenberger with a brutal knee that landed square on the button of "The Juggernaut."
A rematch between Condit and Kampmann would make for a fight that many were clamoring for after seeing Kampmann's last win. It makes a lot of sense, especially since the last time the two fought, the results came down a very close split decision that could have gone either way.
At this point, it's a fight that is nowhere near being put together, but every month that St. Pierre remains out of action is another step closer to it becoming a reality.
The real question is this: Is November too long a wait?
