Vitor Belfort Nearly Became UFC's First Three-Division Champion in 2015

Vitor Belfort entered his UFC 187 middleweight title challenge against Chris Weidman in 2015 believing he would become the promotion's first simultaneous three-division champion, even releasing commemorative T-shirts to that effect. Belfort had won five of his last six fights by finish but was knocked out by Weidman after a competitive start to the bout. The piece draws a parallel to Alex Pereira's current bid to become UFC's second three-belt champion, noting that Pereira, like Belfort at UFC 187, is 38 years old — though unlike Belfort, Pereira enters as the favorite.