The Fight Before the Fight: Weight-Cutting in Mixed Martial Arts

Brazen604

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When MMA fighters meet in the cage, they attempt to knock their opponent out with an array of punches, kicks, knees and elbows, or force them to tap out with painful submission holds from chokes to armbars. However, there’s a mandatory part of the sport that is arguably more dangerous than the fight itself: weight-cutting.

Fighters must make a certain weight one day before they compete in order to meet their respective weight class requirements. To do so, they cut weight, which entails artificial rapid weight loss through dehydrating themselves and sucking water out of their bodies in the days leading up to a fight. Fighters who fail to make weight are deemed to be unprofessional by fans and fellow fighters and are fined roughly 20 percent of their fight purse.

It’s not an easy process. Between dieting from about a couple months before the fight to sweating out their water just days before, fighters routinely lose around 25–35 lbs. Mixed martial artists have different reasons for cutting weight, but nutritionists, physicians, doctors and coaches regard extreme weight-cutting as an unsafe practice that constantly occurs in the sport of MMA. The process, if botched, has led to unconsciousness, kidney failure, hospitalization or even death for some of these athletes.


“It’s a dirty aspect of the sport.”
Between weigh-ins and fight time, fighters strategically rehydrate and regain most of the weight they lost in order to tip the scales at their weight class’ limit. For example, a welterweight who weighed 170 on Friday evening will be 190 on Saturday night. This has become the norm in all levels of MMA, different from when former fighter René Dreifuss competed on the New York regional circuit from 2004 to 2007 at 155 lbs.

“Weight-cutting has become an essential part of the strategy to win,” said Dreifuss. At 49, he is the head coach of Radical MMA in Manhattan and instructs a few amateur mixed martial artists. “At this point in MMA, it is something that you cannot avoid. It’s a dirty aspect of the sport.”

Read the full article HERE... https://mmasucka.com/2020/02/24/the-fight-before-the-fight-weight-cutting-in-mixed-martial-arts/
 
Weight cutting is alot like PED usage.

Once that first person does it, everyone feels like they have to do it to to stay competitive.
 
Weight cutting is alot like PED usage.

Once that first person does it, everyone feels like they have to do it to to stay competitive.
True, it's a tricky one. We all want it gone, but no one wants to get their undersized ass tuned up like Diego did a couple weeks ago.
 
GOAT.

hqdefault.jpg
 
Low key posting a school paper for free proofreading:

stonks
 
When MMA fighters meet in the cage, they attempt to knock their opponent out with an array of punches, kicks, knees and elbows, or force them to tap out with painful submission holds from chokes to armbars. However, there’s a mandatory part of the sport that is arguably more dangerous than the fight itself: weight-cutting.

Fighters must make a certain weight one day before they compete in order to meet their respective weight class requirements. To do so, they cut weight, which entails artificial rapid weight loss through dehydrating themselves and sucking water out of their bodies in the days leading up to a fight. Fighters who fail to make weight are deemed to be unprofessional by fans and fellow fighters and are fined roughly 20 percent of their fight purse.

It’s not an easy process. Between dieting from about a couple months before the fight to sweating out their water just days before, fighters routinely lose around 25–35 lbs. Mixed martial artists have different reasons for cutting weight, but nutritionists, physicians, doctors and coaches regard extreme weight-cutting as an unsafe practice that constantly occurs in the sport of MMA. The process, if botched, has led to unconsciousness, kidney failure, hospitalization or even death for some of these athletes.


“It’s a dirty aspect of the sport.”
Between weigh-ins and fight time, fighters strategically rehydrate and regain most of the weight they lost in order to tip the scales at their weight class’ limit. For example, a welterweight who weighed 170 on Friday evening will be 190 on Saturday night. This has become the norm in all levels of MMA, different from when former fighter René Dreifuss competed on the New York regional circuit from 2004 to 2007 at 155 lbs.

“Weight-cutting has become an essential part of the strategy to win,” said Dreifuss. At 49, he is the head coach of Radical MMA in Manhattan and instructs a few amateur mixed martial artists. “At this point in MMA, it is something that you cannot avoid. It’s a dirty aspect of the sport.”

Read the full article HERE... https://mmasucka.com/2020/02/24/the-fight-before-the-fight-weight-cutting-in-mixed-martial-arts/
The only way to really end it is to do hydration tests the day before and day of and then have them weigh in right before they walk out to fight.
 
it all came from high school wrestling here in the USA. It can't be good for a developing body to cut weight, but they do anyhow.
 
This subject has always been weird to me. Fans get mad about it, and there’s a group on here that call it “weight cheating” but the people that you never hear complain about it are the fighters themselves. I’ve never heard a fighter say “well this guy cut more weight then me so he had an advantage”.

Having been through my fair share of weight cuts, I actually have a ton of respect for the guys that can cut a lot of weight and still perform at a top level without getting tired. I’ve also had fights where I didn’t cut any weight and it almost felt like I wasn’t doing something right because I was so used to the process and dieting.

Honestly, there’s advantages to both sides. If a guy wants to cut less weight because he thinks it will help him, then cool. If a guy wants to cut more, then that’s fine with me too as long as he always makes weight. My only problem is when a guy misses weight multiple times. That’s when someone should have to move up but if you always make weight then I don’t have a problem with it.
 
This is why guys like Frankie Edgar should be heralded as real BMFs. He managed to win a title at his natural weight and even at BW he won't have a size advantage. Guys who cut fuck loads of weight rarely do well when they try moving up a weight class (Weidman, Rockhold).
 
This is why guys like Frankie Edgar should be heralded as real BMFs. He managed to win a title at his natural weight and even at BW he won't have a size advantage. Guys who cut fuck loads of weight rarely do well when they try moving up a weight class (Weidman, Rockhold).

Wilder is the definiton of BMF

size & skill disadvantage, black & he KOs People ded
 
This is why guys like Frankie Edgar should be heralded as real BMFs. He managed to win a title at his natural weight and even at BW he won't have a size advantage. Guys who cut fuck loads of weight rarely do well when they try moving up a weight class (Weidman, Rockhold).

To be fair they are both seemingly washed up and with shattered chins.
 
Wilder is the definiton of BMF

size & skill disadvantage, black & he KOs People ded
It's weird how his weight is so low, except for his last fight. Sometimes his weight is lower than Paulo Costa lol.
 
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