Exactly. Every sanctioning body has their own mandatory...and thus was what ruined Lewis' satisfying unification win. He had to fight Ruiz almost instantly because Ruiz was the mandatory at the time (unless I'm truly mistaken). He chose a different fight (Ray Mercer?) and got stripped.
complete credit. A champion has two responsibilities IMO 1) defend against the best available opposition 2) unify the title claims In some instances, not unifying isn't held against them (i.e. title has just been stripped for a bs reason) but generally I want to see a champ trying to unify.
I give Wlad a lot of credit for what he has done. He didnt win the WBA title, but he at least got the man who held it in the ring with him, and in my book that counts.