News UFC Heavyweight Championship (By the Numbers)

[Paolo Delutis]

Couture is a pretty easy one to correct:

Looks about 0.5" taller than 5'10" Nurmagomedov:


An upright Couture is about one inch taller than 5'9.5" Toney:

Couture is about 0.5" shorter than 5'11" Silva:

So Couture is 5'10.5 to 5'11", yet Coleman is shorter than him:

And just to clarify, I'm not criticizing you over the listed heights, just that the listed heights have always been inflated and it'll be nearly impossible to get accuracy on those particular stats.

Pictures arent accurate...but neither are guys measuring....thanks for the input tho

 

[Paolo Delutis]

But what age should I be when I win the title?

Theres a thread for that...cant remember who made it though....

 

[Jorge Luis Borges]

The sport isnt that old...

1940 to 2020 is a huge gap...compared to 1996 to 2020..things arent gunna change that much

But the data show that it has already changed significantly. In the early UFC, average weight for HW champ was 220. Since the Zuffa era it's 248.

I agree with your overall hypothesis that the 240 range is the best for most HWs, but it's not quite conclusive yet, because the sample shows increase over time.

 

[Mr Fahrenheit]

I think its a trend/pattern worth considering ...if one was thinking of making a run at HW ...its more then a coincidence that about half of the HW champions fall between this weight and only 23% of champions have come from.above this weight range...its numbers that shouldnt rule your life but something to consider

Yea it’s definitely not a coincidence.

 

[Paolo Delutis]

But the data show that it has already changed significantly. In the early UFC, average weight for HW champ was 220. Since the Zuffa era it's 248.

I agree with your overall hypothesis that the 240 range is the best for most HWs, but it's not quite conclusive yet, because the sample shows increase over time.

Do you believe than that it will.continue to grow? Has 240 lbs been established as the best...

You seem to be implying its yet to reach its peak...or am i miss understanding


Me personally i can see a HW divisions were all the top guys and champions are 265 or over it and cutting..it just doesnt seem like it physically possible in such a demanding combat sport

 

[Jorge Luis Borges]

Do you believe than that it will.continue to grow? Has 240 lbs been established as the best...

You seem to be implying its yet to reach its peak...or am i miss understanding


Me personally i can see a HW divisions were all the top guys and champions are 265 or over it and cutting..it just doesnt seem like it physically possible in such a demanding combat sport

Yeah, on one hand it's hard to say with a somewhat limited dataset. But your thought seems right. MMA is too demanding on cardio for these super huge guys.

 

[Paolo Delutis]

Yeah, on one hand it's hard to say with a somewhat limited dataset. But your thought seems right. MMA is too demanding on cardio for these super huge guys.

What are your thoughts on if they did an open weight category ( super heavyweight no cap) after 265lbs?

To me...itll be a land of fatties...and not fun to watch...as every other organization thats had one can prove ..i think of Bodog fight

Would you want it?

 

[ThinkBig500]

When JDS and Cain destroyed Carwin and Brock back in the day, you knew the best heavyweights weren’t the biggest.

 

[bufetadanacara]

I would have guessed Mir was lighter than that when he won the title. I remember him getting really big later in his career.

 

[Jorge Luis Borges]

What are your thoughts on if they did an open weight category ( super heavyweight no cap) after 265lbs?

To me...itll be a land of fatties...and not fun to watch...as every other organization thats had one can prove ..i think of Bodog fight

Would you want it?

I agree with you that it would be a miserable division. I would not want it. HW is, ahem, thin enough as it is.

The one possible upside to SHW is that if they made HW something like 205 to 245, a lot of current HWs might slim down a bit and be a bit more fit for their fights.

 

[mmadeewana]

Bas would have been a Middle of Welterweight

 

[moreorless87]

The sport isnt that old...

1940 to 2020 is a huge gap...compared to 1996 to 2020..things arent gunna change that much

I think you could argue as well that the mid/late 20th century was what you saw the biggest shifts in training technique/fitness/nutrition, have those things really shifted that much since the late 90's?

I think a big factor personally is that as skill levels have declined at HW size has become more of a factor, higher skill levels can allow fighters to punch above their weight and arguably more skilled fighters also benefit more from having a speed advantage.

 

[Paolo Delutis]

Bas would have been a Middle of Welterweight

yeah UFC at the time had HW as 200lbs plus...he was defiantly small for modern HW

 

[Paolo Delutis]

I agree with you that it would be a miserable division. I would not want it. HW is, ahem, thin enough as it is.

The one possible upside to SHW is that if they made HW something like 205 to 245, a lot of current HWs might slim down a bit and be a bit more fit for their fights.

Ive suggested in other threads...

Hw - 206 to 235 lbs
SHW- 236 to 265 lbs

This could work but. I dunno if it would solve the out of shape problem we see with some HW..we would just move it to SHW lol

 

[countswagula]

Most frequent occuring height amongst champions = 6 foot 1 inches

Lanklets, when will they learn

 

[Paolo Delutis]

I think you could argue as well that the mid/late 20th century was what you saw the biggest shifts in training technique/fitness/nutrition, have those things really shifted that much since the late 90's?

I think a big factor personally is that as skill levels have declined at HW size has become more of a factor, higher skill levels can allow fighters to punch above their weight and arguably more skilled fighters also benefit more from having a speed advantage.

I do agree, HW has advanced the slowest in terms of Skill because power is the ultimate equalizer ...but also guys seem to see HW a division that doesnt require the discipline of the tighter weight range categories...but in actuality chasing the top weight limit at HW doesnt seem to be that beneficial for being champion...

 

[arcadeperfect]

I don't get why 245 isn't the official weight limit. Let those 265 fat asses go to bellator.

There shouldn't be a weight limit in the first place. That's the whole point of the heavyweight division. Besides being a 300lbs oaf isn't going to magically allow someone to beat guys like Miocic or Ngannou.

 

[moreorless87]

I do agree, HW has advanced the slowest in terms of Skill because power is the ultimate equalizer ...but also guys seem to see HW a division that doesnt require the discipline of the tighter weight range categories...but in actuality chasing the top weight limit at HW doesnt seem to be that beneficial for being champion...

I don't think size is holding back skill, guys like Fedor, Nog and Crocop consistantly beat larger opponents, rather I think that a lack of skill at HW today means size is more of a factor.

You see the same with boxing in recent decades, when skill levels started to decline post millenium the division become dominated by massive guys.

 

[Frode Kristiansen]

The best version of Overeem was the Ubereem weighing in at 260-265.

 

[Paolo Delutis]

The best version of Overeem was the Ubereem weighing in at 260-265.

I dunno he fought pretty good against stipe and he was 248 for that fight....almost became champion..been doing well lately too and hasnt been 265 for awhile