The concept of a lineal champion was developed by boxing fans dissatisfied by the tendency of each of the various sanctioning bodies (WBC, WBA, IBF, etc.) to recognize different champions, and in particular to strip a champion of his title for refusing to fight its top-ranked contender.
In mixed martial arts (MMA), the lineal championship is of particular relevance because up until the mid 2000s, the top-ranked fighters were spread out amongst a number of mixed martial arts promotions across the globe.