When I attempted to build python39-setuptools to test what would be needed in order to have multiple Python 3 stacks in future RHEL, I have noticed the following problem:

python39-setuptools provides:

  python-setuptools = 45.2.0-1.fc33


The build was done by setting the following in spec:

  %global python3_pkgversion 39
  %global __python3 %{_bindir}/python3.9

And indeed the %python_provide macro respects %python3_pkgversion on Fedora in this way:

  $ rpm --define 'python3_pkgversion 39' --eval '%python_provide python%{python3_pkgversion}-setuptools'
  
  Provides: python-setuptools = %{version}-%{release}
  Obsoletes: python-setuptools < %{version}-%{release}

I think we should not use %{python3_pkgversion} in the %python_provide macro to allow resetting %{python3_pkgversion} to a custom value without changing how %python_provide behaves.