Anthony Pettis On Weight Botch: I’m Not Here For The Interim Belt

Former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis became the latest in a long line of issues for UFC 206 yesterday. The Canada-based event had faced issues long before it was even finalized, as negotiations with former welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre provided some negative press. This lead to some fans claiming they’d boycott the event, as GSP became embroiled in a dispute with the promotion. Following that drama, came the removal of the main event title fight.

After Daniel Cormier was injured and Anthony Johnson was dropped from the card, UFC 206 was in need of a revival. UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor was stripped of the title, and so Jose Aldo was promoted. Bumoed up to the main event were Max Holloway and Anthony Pettis, and the interim title was created. Unfortunately for the promotion and the event, that plan fell apart last-minute too.

Heavy

For the first time in his career, Anthony Pettis was unable to make weight. As a result, the junior belt is nopw only up for grabs if Max Holloway wins. Pettis hit the scales at 148 pounds. Speaking for the first time since yesterday’s weigh-in, ‘Showtime’ told MMAFighting.com why he was heavy:

Pettis said he got down to 146.5 pounds before his team decided he would not be able to lose any more weight.

“It was a team call,” Pettis said. “My body just wouldn’t let go of that extra weight. It’s just one those things. We did everything right beforehand, everything was on point. My body just gave out. I had nothing left to give. In the end, we decided that my career and health are more important than those two extra pounds.”

“I’m not here for the interim belt,” he said. “Originally, this fight wasn’t for the belt. The plan has always been to just beat Max Holloway. He’s not beating me tomorrow night.”

What’s Next?

Should Pettis defeat Holloway, although he won’t get the junior belt, surely he’s next for the title shot. That said, if he should face similar weight issues for a full title fight, it would be a far messier situation.

Stay tuned.

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