How does the "weigh-in" process work in the UFC?

[Makalakumu]

How does the "weigh-in" process work in the UFC? I see a lot of fighters who seem to be way over what their stated weights are and that begs the question, what is the worth of this process? How fair is it?

I know some people can cut weight like nothing else, like they can easily drop a weight class and others who really really struggle...

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

How does the "weigh-in" process work in the UFC? I see a lot of fighters who seem to be way over what their stated weights are and that begs the question, what is the worth of this process? How fair is it?

I know some people can cut weight like nothing else, like they can easily drop a weight class and others who really really struggle...

Well in a fight sport it is very important to be as light as you can and yet still be in your top condition and at your strongest. So cutting weight effectively and coming in as the stronger, larger person is an advantage. Some people do this effectively and other's struggle. When I was kickboxing (way back in the day) I would routinely lose up to fifteen to twenty pounds and this really helped me. (I would come in as the taller and heavier fighter almost every time) I could lose that weight in roughly about three to four days and after the weigh in would pack about 60% to 70% back on before the fight with pasta. This always helped alot!

So current UFC and MMA fighters are doing the same and it really behooves any competitor to learn this part of the sport effectively. Look at the recent GSP/Koscheck fight and GSP looked much larger and stronger than Koshcheck. (just an example)

 

[Andrew Green]

Weigh ins are done the day before, in order to fight you have to meet the weight for the class, with a 1 pound margin of error. So if the weight class is 205, you can get away with 206. Fighters have access to the scale leading up to the weigh in, and will "cut weight" before it to get down to that weight.

Cutting weight largely involves getting water out of your system by sweating. So fighters typically look more "ripped" durring the weigh in. Once they weigh in, and make the weight they are not weighed again before the fight. So they rehydrate putting back on whatever weight they cut, which can be up to 20-30 lbs in extreme cases.

Is it fair? I don't know, but I can't think of a better idea. Doing wiegh ins right before the fight would make things worse IMO, then if a fighter needs to cut to make weight he can't rehydrate before the fight starts. Even losing a few pounds that way immediately before a fight could decrease performance.

Plus different guys carry there weight differently, no 100% fair way to do it, but the current method is probably as close as we can get.

 

[benj13bowlin]

If fighters were required to weigh in the day of the fight I think they would be more likely to fight at their actual weight. Especially since there would be no benefit to losing 20-30 pounds just to make the weight if they were having to come into the fight half starved and seriously dehydrated.

 

[jks9199]

You want to be more fair about making weight for any event, how about this idea...

Weigh them 3 or 4 times over at least the week, and preferably the month of the fight (or throughout the season... I've seen youth football where kids make weight at the start of the season, but gain 10 to 15 pounds by the end... which makes a huge difference in those sorts of leagues.) If they aren't within a reasonable margin of the weight for the fight, like 5%, for the entire time, then they're overweight, and whatever sanctions are appropriate are applied.

 

[Tez3]

If fighters were required to weigh in the day of the fight I think they would be more likely to fight at their actual weight. Especially since there would be no benefit to losing 20-30 pounds just to make the weight if they were having to come into the fight half starved and seriously dehydrated.

We have on the day weigh-ins and the fighters will still cut weight and make it up after the weigh-in. The weigh in is at 1500hr with the fightnight starting at 1930h so they have plenty of time to put back water and weight comfortably. The amateur fights are first, they rarely cut weight, then the semi pros who sometimes do and then the pros at around 2130hrs so they have about six hours to recover. If we have foreign fighters who are staying in hotels they usually have a day before weigh in.

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

We have on the day weigh-ins and the fighters will still cut weight and make it up after the weigh-in. The weigh in is at 1500hr with the fightnight starting at 1930h so they have plenty of time to put back water and weight comfortably. The amateur fights are first, they rarely cut weight, then the semi pros who sometimes do and then the pros at around 2130hrs so they have about six hours to recover. If we have foreign fighters who are staying in hotels they usually have a day before weigh in.

Way back in the day I have also cut weight and weighed in on the same day. I put the water weight back on comfortably within 2 to 3 hours and had the fight's with no problem.