A foolproof and easy way to end extreme weight cutting

[Celeron]

If fighters want to cut weight and they make weight then there’s no issue from me. I’ve never once heard a fighter complain that he’s fighting guys that are cutting too much weight. It’s only brought up when someone’s favorite fighter loses to someone that looks bigger.

Agreed, there are advantages and disadvantages to fighters coming in heavier or lighter. it’s a bit dishonest to wait until after your favorite fighter loses to all of a sudden have a problem with the practice of large weight cutting.

I have a hard time believing anyone would even be mentioning or complaining about large weight cutting if Izzy would have won, so what gives, why all of a sudden is this the hot topic now?

 

[Vegeta12]

It’s much simpler and more effective to use hydration tests like One Championship is doing.

Yeah so when their events have like 8+ people miss hydration and fuck up the card that's a great look

Cutting weight is not the issue people make it out to be in MMA. They are adults and professional athletes and can choose not to.

 

[dipstickjimmy]

asking fighters to be in fighting shape 24/7 even outside of competition is more extreme than weight cutting

I think they should have to be in their weight class range 6 weeks out from the fight. 3 scheduled weight checks and 3 random. 6 weeks out, 3 weeks out and fight night scheduled and 3 random. Miss weight = 10% fine. miss by more than X amount of lbs means next fight must be the next weight class.

 

[Dorkman]

Weigh them fight day. And for each pound they've gained since weigh in hold a cattle prod to their leg for an amount of seconds equal to the poundage. We'll see who wants to keep cutting weight after that.

 

[dipstickjimmy]

Agree, there are advantages and disadvantages to fighters coming in heavier or lighter. it’s about dishonest to wait until after your favorite fighter loses to all of a sudden have a problem with the practice of large weight cutting.

I have a hard time believing anyone would even be mentioning or complaining about large weights if Izzy would have won, so what gives, why is a lot all a sudden the hot topic now?

I have been wanting weight cutting ended for a long time. Guys who fight a quick fight and take no damage still often say they need to "recover from the weight cut". They could fight more with no dehydration to fight a guy who did the same thing and they both weigh the same.

 

[Celeron]

I have been wanting weight cutting ended for a long time. Guys who fight a quick fight and take no damage still often say they need to "recover from the weight cut". They could fight more with no dehydration to fight a guy who did the same thing and they both weigh the same.

The problem with eliminating weight cutting is that some fighters stay in shape all year around, while others ballon themselves up. Imagine a guy like Paddy Pimblett fighting at heavyweight? You would have some serious size disadvantages.

 

[TJ177]

Ncaa wrestling solved this years ago. Do weigh ins 2 hours before the fight. There would be no incentive to suck yourself out because you couldn't fight.

Promoters would never go for it because of damage to the cards if guys miss day of.

 

[bubbleboyjones]

I would do the following

• All weight classes have 20lbs added to them(MW 185 becomes MW 205....etc). I'd make HW the exception and have a 300lb limit
• Weigh ins conducted the night before at the ceremony like old times.
• Second weigh in occurs right before the fight. If fighter weighs anything over they are fined 20% for every half pound over.
• If fighter violates the weight limit more than once they get a multi year ban from the weight class or have to move up

 

[Clark Rogers]

OPs idea is the second decent one I've seen recently.

Problem is, I don't really think it's a problem. Much like so many things today, folks that aren't really involved (in this case, the fans) are making bigger deals out of it than those that are involved.

In that respect it kinda feels like the social media virtue signaling types that latch onto a cause and fuss about it more than those really impacted by said cause. Far less egregious here, but similar IMO.

 

[Qays Stetkevich]

When usada conducts their random tests on a fighter, they bring along a scale. A fighter can only compete in weight classes that are greater than or equal to their measured weight/(1 + a random percentage) for the next year.
So for example, if fighter x weighs in at 214 pounds at the random weigh in and the threshold is 20%, he can only compete at any weight class above 214/1.2=178 pounds so he's good for 185 or above.


Edit: I wanna clarify that I don't think weight cutting is a problem right now and I can see why the UFC wouldn't crack down on it, but if they really wanted to end it, I haven't seen many better solutions than mine. I know one does hydration tests but I am still pretty suspicious of their accuracy especially looking at Moraes and DJ

Day-of weigh-ins would do the trick too and be simpler to enforce.

 

[HeffDoesWant]

Abusive weight cutting (+15%) is cowardly.
Nearly killing yourself to fight a smaller man/woman is pathetic.

It's become the norm.

Now it's about removing a disadvantage, not gaining one.

 

[richardjohnson]

People don’t trust USADA to do what they are supposed to, who would trust them to weigh fighters at their houses where no one would see it? People will call bullshit on certain weigh ins conducted in front of everyone just because the fight takes place somewhere they don’t like

 

[Bagatur]

since they will never implement weigh-ins shortly before the fights for various reasons, a way to "end" extreme weight-cutting would be to allow only a certain weight gain before the fight. maybe not be out of the weight class above or even more strict like no more than half-way into the weight class above.
MWs fighting at HW weights is just ridiculous.

 

[dipstickjimmy]

The problem with eliminating weight cutting is that some fighters stay in shape all year around, while others ballon themselves up. Imagine a guy like Paddy Pimblett fighting at heavyweight? You would have some serious size disadvantages.

Paddy isn't a HW 6 weeks out from an upcoming fight. He also .wouldn't likely balloon up when he doesn't have to go thru insanely strict diets to "Make Weight". Fight camps aren't weight loss camps. LWs typically weigh 166-175 lbs on fight night so that should be the weight class.

Mighty Mouse never weighs more than 142 lbs so Fly W 136-145,
BW 146-155, FW 156-165, LW 166-175, WW(GSP is always in this range) 186-195, MW 196-205, Super MW 206-220, LHW 220-235, HW 235 + and if you wanted SHW then 285 +

 

[HuskySamoan]

Im really suspicious of their accuracy . No way dj and moraes were the same weight in there

OneFC weight cutting is a joke, just like UFCs USADA testing. Most fans are idiots and just believe this stuff. Its a tiresome subject, the people who are reasonable get it and those who don't want to get it, don't.

 

[PunchesOnLunches]

When usada conducts their random tests on a fighter, they bring along a scale. A fighter can only compete in weight classes that are greater than or equal to their measured weight/(1 + a random percentage) for the next year.
So for example, if fighter x weighs in at 214 pounds at the random weigh in and the threshold is 20%, he can only compete at any weight class above 214/1.2=178 pounds so he's good for 185 or above.


Edit: I wanna clarify that I don't think weight cutting is a problem right now and I can see why the UFC wouldn't crack down on it, but if they really wanted to end it, I haven't seen many better solutions than mine. I know one does hydration tests but I am still pretty suspicious of their accuracy especially looking at Moraes and DJ

Idk if I understood your proposition entirely but as far as I can tell in that case might as well just have fighters weigh in the day of fight and couple that with a hydration test. Everyone fights at their natural weight for that sense.

 

[Masturbin]

It's become the norm.

Now it's about removing a disadvantage, not gaining one.

The norm has to be 12-14 % something like that.

People at 18-20% are rare

 

[savemgs]

People could always quit crying and let grown adults make their own choices.

 

[El Fernas]

A fighter could go on a eating binge induced by whatever and balloon to any weight. Only fighting shape weight matters.

IMO they should just measure weights multiple times in the fortnight leading to the fight, with some allowance depending on how many days left until the fight. Would be pretty hard to cut weight for 2 weeks.

I dont think fighters like Pereira go from his alleged 230lbs to 185lbs in a matter of days, a couple of weeks before the fight he is probably close-ish to 185lbs, but he bounces back hard after weigh-in / fight, CSAC rules might be better, but you need every state in it to work.

 

[humdizzle]

The effective acceleration of gravity at the poles is 980.665 cm/sec/sec while at the equator it is 3.39 cm/sec/sec less due to the centrifugal force. If you weighed 100 pounds at the north pole on a spring scale, at the equator you would weigh 99.65 pounds, or 5.5 ounces less

so a 200+ pound fighter would weigh 1 pound less at the equator than at the poles. due to the spin of the earth counteracting gravity.