Former Maximum Fighting Championship lightweight title holder Antonio ‘Mandingo’ McKee (27-4-2) had been set to defend his title this past weekend at MFC 32 versus opponent Brian Cobb, but a bad weight cut saw him hit the scales seven pounds over limit.
The result of that was to see McKee stripped of the title, and according to MFC President Mark Pavalich, that win or lose ‘Mandingo’ was cut from the Canadian promotion.
McKee would go on to defeat Cobb via unanimous decision for his second straight victory, and sixteenth in eighteen matches.
The former MFC champ talked to Sherdog.com recently, saying that he was having kidney issues during the weight cut, and blames part of his release on the MFC not being able to find an opponent capable of beating him.
“[Pavelich] knew I wasn’t going to make weight before the fight because I told him I wasn’t going to make weight. I was sick. I had f—ing kidney issues. My stomach was messed up. They already knew that.”
“I called Brian Cobb and told him that I wasn’t going to make weight and that he wouldn’t be fighting for the title,” McKee said. “The surprise to me was that Brian Cobb didn’t make weight. He stepped on the scale first, and he was a half-pound over. I stepped on the scale and weighed 159.8 pounds [before the weigh-in]. I started rehydrating, because my organs were starting to give me issues, and I weighed in at 162… ”
“The problem is that Mark Pavelich doesn’t have anyone who can beat me, and it costs him a lot of money to bring in guys to fight me. That’s the real reason why I’m not in the MFC, because he can’t afford me anymore,” said McKee.
MFC 32 took place at the Mayfield Inn Trade and Convention Centre in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The main card, including McKee’s win, was broadcast live on HDNet.