NYSAC shows flexibility, Gastelum vs. Kennedy on for UFC 206
At UFC 205 the New York State Athletic Commission took an admirable stand against fighters missing weight. Kelvin Gastelum so greatly failed…
At UFC 205 the New York State Athletic Commission took an admirable stand against fighters missing weight. Kelvin Gastelum so greatly failed to make weight that he never bothered to even step on the scale, so the NYSAC suspended him for six months. For good measure, UFC president Dana White vowed he would never fight at welterweight again.
UFC middleweight Tim Kennedy too had been scheduled to fight at UFC 205, vs. Rashad Evans, but the NYSAC refused to license ‘Suga’ due to an irregularity on his CAT scan. That fight was moved to UFC 206 in Toronto on December 10, but the Ontario commission likewise refused licensing, on the same grounds.
This lead to Kennedy being matched with Gastelum at UFC 206. Ontario honors other ABC member suspensions, so the new fight would have been off, but the NYSAC showed admirable flexibility.
Gastelum had vowed to appeal the suspension, but according to New York State Department spokesperson Laz Benitez, the commission and the fighter settled on a $2,000 fine, prior to the hearing.
The NYSAC has received some criticism for changing the suspension to a fine. However, the commission is new to MMA, and should be applauded for taking a stand against fighters who miss weight.
As Kennedy explained after Gastelum failed to even try to make the weight he signed a contract to meet, it is the behavior of a lazy, unprofessional, disrespectful a******. Missing weight robs the opponent of the opportunity to fight and win, robs the promotion of the money they spent on promoting the fight, and robs fans of an anticipated fight. What’s nuts is doing nothing about it. If six months is too harsh a response, then kudos to the NYSAC for showing flexibility, and above all, kudos to the NYSAC for doing something, anything, about professional fighters missing their contracted weight.
In a change that hopefully works out well for him, Gastelum will be preparing for the fight at Kings MMA with Rafael Cordeiro.