LAS VEGAS — Whether it’s a super fight or a “superfight,” it’s on.
UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo and challenger Frankie Edgar both successfully made weight, setting up the anticipated UFC 156 matchup,
“He’s a great fighter, but I’m going to send him back to his weight class,” Aldo said after hitting the scale at 145 pounds, one pound heavier than Edgar.
Both fighters appeared to hit the number with ease. Edgar sprinted up the stairs and stomped on the stage as if to announce his presence. After making weight he said he felt better than ever at 145.
Aldo (21-1), who has had some tough cuts in the past, jogged in place on stage while waiting for Edgar to give his comments to weigh-in emcee Joe Rogan.
If Edgar (15-3-1) wins, he would become only the third two-division champion in UFC history following Randy Couture and B.J. Penn.
In a heavyweight match two years in the making, Alistair Overeem will take a two-pound advantage into the cage over Antonio Silva. Overeem, though, weighed in with his jeans on, making 264 pounds. If you’re wondering if he was any smaller than he used to be, the answer is no. The number he hit was actually one pound more than he weighed in his last fight, against Brock Lesnar at UFC 141 in December 2011.
Overeem and Silva had a heated exchange at Thursday’s media day. This time was slightly less heated, but Overeem got in a few words. Silva did not respond, but just nodded his head as if he to acknowledge his challenge.
In the light-heavyweight co-main event, both Rashad Evans and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira hit 206 pounds. Evans could be fighting for a chance to challenge middleweight champion Anderson Silva, though that decision remains to be determined.
The weigh-ins got off to a rough start after the first three fighters to step on the scale missed their targets. After the first pairing failed, Nevada state athletic commission executive director Keith Kizer re-checked the calibration, and all seemed to be in order, so it appeared to be a case of fighters missing weight over any scale issue. Chico Camus broke the streak when he made 134 pounds for his bantamweight bout with Dustin Kimura.
No other fighters after that missed their mark. After the weigh-ins it was announced that Kimura would not attempt to cut anymore weight and would be fined 20 percent of his purse. The other two who missed weight will have two hours to make their number.
Main Card
Jose Aldo (145) vs. Frankie Edgar (144)
Rashad Evans (206) vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (206)
Alistair Overeem (264) vs. Antonio Silva (262)
Jon Fitch (171) vs. Demian Maia (170)
Joseph Benavidez (126) vs. Ian McCall (125)
Preliminary Card
Gleison Tibau (155) vs. Evan Dunham (155)
Tyron Woodley (170) vs. Jay Hieron (168)
Jacob Volkmann (156) vs. Bobby Green (155)
Yves Edwards (155) vs. Isaac Vallie-Flagg (156)
Chico Camus (134) vs. Dustin Kimura (139.5)
Edwin Figueroa (136) vs. Francisco Rivera (135.5)
[Note: Figueroa, who originally weighed in at 137.5, and Rivera, who originally weighed in at 137, each made weight on their second tries, about 90 minutes after the televised weigh-ins concluded.]