There is a lethal culture of extreme weight cutting at the elite level of mixed martial arts. A number of steps are being taken to address the issue, most recently moving weigh ins to 10:00 a.m. – noon at the hotel, rather than at 5:00 p.m. at the venue. As the brain does not always fully rehydrate within 24 hours, the extra half day is significant, and fighters do not have to wait around for hours being transported to the arena after cutting.
California started the trend, and it is being rapidly adopted elsewhere, to universal cheers.
Ohio is conducting a different experiment, moving weigh ins for Pro-am events to same day, perhaps as early as 10:00 a.m. Amateurs in OH currently weigh in same day, and now the lower level pros that you typically find on a pro am card will be doing the same thing. The new rule will not apply to pro-only shows like the UFC and Bellator.
Ohio Athletic Commission executive director Bernie Profato spoke withMarc Raimondi for MMA Fighting and said the change is an attempt to encourage fighters to compete closer to their natural weight. He also said it is an experiment, and that it will be reviewed after a year.
“We want to put these fighters in the safest atmosphere we can put them in,” said Profato. “We’re gonna try this. If it doesn’t work, we can rescind it. It’s not like this is in stone. If we don’t think it’s gonna work, we can rescind. But if we think it’s a good idea, we can pass this information on to everybody else and everybody may want to adopt it then.”
“If you can’t be rehydrated by 9 or 10 o’clock that evening for your fight, then you probably had some serious issues coming in.”
The new California inspired change could theoretically mean fighters will try to cut even more weight.
“That’s the one issue that we’re looking at,” said Profato. “If they want to do it this way, how much are you letting them lose then? That’s the scary part here. If that’s the answer, listen we’re hoping for what’s best for the fighters. You don’t know what we’re trying isn’t the answer.”
The UFC has an event scheduled on Sept. 10 in Cleveland, and undoubtedly will hope to use the earlier weigh in protocol. Profato said he is open to the discussion, and that it will come down to a vote by the commissioners.
“We can try it and see,” said Profato. “That’s not up to me to decide. I don’t think we’ll have a problem. We’ll discuss it.”
