“I always watched the champions, you know, the WBC belt, IBF, everybody, WBO, WBA,” Foster said on the Ariel Helwani Show. “It’s true history and true legends that I’ve looked up to that have fought for these belts, and that means so much to a fighter.”
Foster said the established sanctioning bodies have spent decades building the value attached to their championships, making it difficult for any new organization to immediately gain the same level of recognition.
“It’s kind of hard to take that away and try to change the program,” Foster said. “It’s going to be years and years of history that they will have to try to make to be able to repeat what the WBC and everyone else did.”
The WBC junior lightweight champion stopped short of dismissing the project outright, but admitted he remains unsure of how the concept will develop.
“I’m definitely, I don’t know,” Foster said. “I couldn’t see myself. I just have to say I don’t know. We have to see.”
Foster’s comments come as discussion continues over Zuffa Boxing’s planned league-style model and its intention to launch its own championship belt. The project has already sparked debate in the sport, particularly among fighters who have spent years chasing titles sanctioned by the WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO.
While much of the attention surrounding Foster’s interview centered on his ongoing rivalry with Stevenson, his comments offered a glimpse into how at least one reigning world champion views the challenge facing any new boxing title system.
The issue is not whether a new promotion can attract fighters. It is whether decades of championship history can be recreated in a short period of time.
