Did Denver’s altitude affect UFC 135 fighters?
Doc – Please help settle an ongoing debate. Did the altitude in Denver have a negative effect on the fighters?…
Doc – Please help settle an ongoing debate. Did the altitude in Denver have a negative effect on the fighters? And were heavyweight fighters at more of disadvantage than the lighter-weight guys?
I don’t know if I can settle anything, but I’ll certainly add my two cents.
The basic question is: Does significant altitude affect athletic performance?
Remember that the human body is an engine. It needs three basic things to run: oxygen, water and fuel/food, in that order. The bigger the engine, the greater the potential consumption of all three components. Therefore, heavyweight fighters are at a greater disadvantage than the lighter-weight athletes. The big boys need a tremendous amount of oxygen to fire up the engine and move that load. As we all saw at UFC 135 in Denver, obviously oxygen was in short supply.
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Let’s put it all together.
The altitude in Denver provided less available oxygen in the blood. Heavyweight fighters are doing more work because they have a greater load to carry. The body compensates by increasing heart rate and breathing, which causes the fighter to burn through his “tank” faster and gas.
I won’t even begin to bore you with why weight-cutting makes this altitude problem far worse.
