CSAC recommends four UFC fighters move up a weight class
One of Foster’s 10 Points is a requirement that fighters stay within 10% of contracted weight, as determined by the official weigh-ins and then another on fight day.
The culture of extreme weight cutting is the most dangerous regulatory issue in mixed martial arts. Andy Foster, executive director of the California State Athletic Commission has created a 10 Point Plan to fix the deadly problem. It works. The ABC medical committee supports it. The ABC has adopted it. The UFC supports it and will continue to adopt further parts of it.
One of Foster’s 10 Points is a requirement that fighters stay within 10% of contracted weight, as determined by the official weigh-ins and then another weigh-in on fight day. Four fighters at UFC Fight Night 123 on December 9 in Fresno, California failed to do so:
•Iuri Alcantara weighed in at 135.4 but was 154.6 on fight day, a gain of 14%;
•Marlon Moraes weighted in at 135.4 but was 155 on fight day, a gain of 14.5%;
•David Ramos weighed in at 155.8 but was 179 on fight day, a gain of 15%; and,
•Luke Sanders weighed in at 135.6 but was 154.5 on fight day, a gain of 14%.
These gains are bonkers. If a fighter is competing two divisions up, what is the point of weight divisions? Marc Raimondi for MMA Fighting reports that the CSAC will not license the four fighters at their current weight classes in the future without extensive medical documentation from a licensed physician certifying the weight class is appropriate and verified by CSAC physicians.
The culture of extreme weight cutting is all the more bonkers as there is little evidence that helps in a fight, as borne out at UFC Fresno where the four fighters with a weight “advantage” went just 50-50:
•Iuri Alcantara lost a decision;
•Marlon Moraes won via KO;
•David Ramos won via submission;weighed in at 155.8 but was 179 on fight day, a gain of 15%; and,
•Luke Sanders lost via TKO.
Foster is taking ethical, measured, intelligent steps to deal with the deadly problem, but he cannot be completely successful on his own. His changes are going become the standard. The sole questions is whether a high-profile fighter has to die first.
