Midnight Mania! 13 Fighters Gain Too Much Weight At UFC 241

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Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Cutting weight is often referred to as the hardest part of fighting.

It’s also one of the most controversial and dangerous aspects of the sports. Fighters routinely drain themselves anywhere from 10 to 30 lbs. within the week of the fight in order to step on the scale at the appropriate weight, rehydrating over the next 24 hours up to a much heavier number. Fans are quick to accuse fighters who struggle with the weight cut of desperately seeking a size advantage, but truthfully, those who refuse to push the issue at the scale are often at a major disadvantage.

With 4 oz. gloves, every extra pound of force counts.

The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) is the most active in the sport when it comes to fighting extreme weight cutting. Currently, the commission advises athletes not to cut and regain more than 10% of their total body weight. The commission does not yet fully enforce this rule, but the CSAC does do an additional fight day weigh-in and has forced fighters to move up in weight in the past in extreme cases.

As usual, a majority of the fighters who competed blew through that 10% recommendation. In total, 13 of the 24 athletes competing were too heavy for CSAC’s liking. Notably, Manny Bermudez was 17.7% heavier than on weigh-in day, and he was already granted a catchweight of 140 lbs. rather than his usual 135!

Here’s a full list courtesy of MMAFighting:

MMAFighting, California State Athletic Commission

In the future, CSAC may cancel fights entirely when fighters put on more than 10%, which could absolutely decimate a UFC event. It will be interesting to see the consequences: will UFC avoid California? Or merely force fighters up a weight class for a one-off when scheduled in the Golden State?

As I sit here writing from Sacramento, California, weighing 142 lbs. while potentially just 19 days away from a professional contest at Flyweight (125 lbs), l have a personal interest in the topic as well. I plan to cut less than 10% water weight, but we shall see how it all shakes out!

Insomnia

Old school cool:

Apparently there was an MMA edition of Family Feud?

Daniel Cormier reflect on his championship loss.

The idea that nobody cares about Colby Covington is blatantly false. People hate the guy… except for Nate Diaz.

This could be a wild fight someday.

Valentina Shevchenko is definitely living her best life.

The disrespect!

Slips, rips, and KO clips

One of the best fighters on the planet lost this weekend in a non-title fight, but a rematch is likely to occur sooner than later.

Manel Kape is a really legit Rizin fighter as well.

A pretty wild sequence of events:

Random Land

A cool travel spot for those into the mysterious/creepy:

Midnight Music: Last night, I checked off a major bucket list item by seeing The Rolling Stones live, and I’m still buzzing about it. A fairly well-known fun fact about the song below: Jumpin’ Jack Flash may have been a No. 1 single in the UK and the Stones’ most played live song (as well as last night’s opener), but it never actually appeared on a studio album.

Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.