Joe Rogan: The UFC Needs More Weight Classes; Do You Agree?

I actually like it as is, but 225 makes sense down the road as HW gets deeper.

Lets say guys cut 10% of their weight on average.
Here is some math:
  • @145 that means coming down from 161, 16lbs.
  • @155 that means coming down from 172, 17lbs.
  • @170 that means coming down from 188, 18lbs.
  • @185 that means coming down from 205, 20lbs.
  • @205 that means coming down from 228, 23lbs.

My point here is look how close that 10% difference is to the next weight class up. If anything we have too many lower weight classes.

I have a better solution than Joe's:
Let's say a guy is "naturally" a 195er (after his healthy weight cut). My solution is he should lose muscle mass or gain muscle mass so that he can make a healthy weight cut to 185 or 205 and he can cut the appropriate amount of water weight for his body size. I don't know where the myth of a natural weight class came from but the human body is a fluid thing, with proper nutrition and training you can safely move to one of the existing weight classes.
 
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Even though there isn't a lot of great HW talent, I do feel that 206 to 265 is to big of a gap. Randy Couture probably shouldn't have been fighting with Brock Lesnar...he was outweighed by about 60 pounds on fight night.
 
I would rather they restructured the weight classes to consolidate the talent in what are now thinner divisions.
Merge LHW and HW into a single division capped around 215. Most of the good HWs come in around 240... they can lose a little and cut a little to make that.
Raise MW a little to allow the smaller LHWs to go down.
I'm tempted to merge Fly and Bantam at 130 and bring Feather down to 140, but I worry about putting even more people into LW.
LW and WW are the deepest divisions and, if anything, I'd like to have them lose a few people to FW and MW respectively.

So, without much thought, I'd prefer something like this:
HW - 215
MW - 190
WW - 170
LW - 155
FW - 140
BW - 130
 
Absolutely no. Boxing used to have 8 weight classes... Then they added a bunch and that was the beginning of the end for boxing.. Super Heavyweight? They can't even find enough good heavyweights right now.... There are maybe a couple of super heavyweights in the world that could even go 5 rounds without completely gassing anyways.. I like Joe, he's a smart dude but he's wrong in this one for sure..
 
So would you support a weight class system like this if it resulted in less weight cutting?

265 Heavyweight
225 Cruiserweight
205 Light Heavyweight
195 Super Middleweight
185 Middleweight
175 Super Welterweight
165 Welterweight
155 Lightweight
145 Featherweight
135 Bantamweight
125 Flyweight

A very empathic YES!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
so the point of more weight classes is what ?

More belts
More ppvs
more money??

First and Foremost. Safer weight cutting.

Secondary, more belts for more Championship fights could fill more cards, not necassarily more PPV's. FOX would get more Championship fights or they could have 2 title fights on more of the PPV's they already have planned.

Also, only a 10 gap between weightclasses makes Superfights more feasible.
 
No. Although you could make a good argument for more classes, it seemed like the push for lower weight classes has me less interested in the sport overall.
 
People often mention Cruiserweight (225) or Super Middleweight / Franklinweight (195), but unfortunately LHW and HW are already pretty shallow the way things are now (I like Gus, but, for god sake, he's getting a title shot coming off a loss).
Let alone how crappy things would become with two more divisions over 185*.

Instead LW is almost "too deep", I mean sometimes I sort of "feel" for a number 16-20 LW.
WW is pretty great too.

That's why, for the moment, I'd only add 165.
So: 145, 155, 165, 175, 185, 205

* "at best" if one "had" to add 195 or 200, I'd move LHW to 210-215-220; so 3 classes over 185
Having 195-205-225-HW, so four of them, would be madness (as of today), imo.
 
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Only an idiot would want a 225 class. Almost all HWs could make that without too much difficulty. All it would do would split a historically weak HW division.
 
Yeah I've long wanted a 225 pound division and 195 makes a hell of a lot of sense.
 
I voted no too. Maybe in ten years when the MMA talent pool gets deep enough, but right now, it would just water down weight divisions.

100% agree. If anything, maybe add a 165 and switch ww to 175 since lightweight has like 200 fighters right now.
 
LHW and HW are both dying divisions. There's no young talent or good prospects and it's filled with old guys that will be retired in the upcoming few years. When Ryan Bader and a washed up Evans are considered a legit title contender and your Champ is pushing 40 you're fucked. When former has beens look good because of the lack of depth (Mir, Arlovski) and you're begging for a certain former legend past his prime to come back you know there's a problem. Both LHW and HW champs are on the wrong side of 30.

More divisions??? GTFO
 
100% agree. If anything, maybe add a 165 and switch ww to 175 since lightweight has like 200 fighters right now.
This makes a lot of sense, and it would make every weight division separated by 10lbs up to 185, which will help with 175lb bohemoths cutting down to 155lbs by giving them a 165lbs division, meanwhile bigger welterweights like Hendricks, Lawler, and MacDonald have less weight to cut to make 175lbs.
 
Honestly the only division that should even be considered is a 225 pound division. We don't need any more classes below that.
 
The reason i voted yes is to break up the heavy weight class some.. A fighter weighing 210 is in the same class as someone at 265.
 

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