All that fretting about Mark Hunt’s weight ended up being much ado about nothing, as both he and Roy Nelson successfully cleared the heavyweight limit at Friday’s UFC Fight Night 52 weigh-ins in Japan.
Hunt tipped the scales at a hulking 264 pounds, while Nelson came in at a slightly trimmer 260 pounds ahead of the pair’s Saturday night main event, which will take place in Japan’s legendary Saitama Super Arena and air live on UFC Fight Pass.
“One thing I respect about Mark, and Mark respects about me, is we’re both fighters. We just come out and we just put on a show for the fans,” Nelson said afterward, adding, “Me and Mark are going to make it explode.”
Hunt, who made weight despite reports claiming he had 19 pounds to cut on Thursday morning, appeared to be in high spirits when asked about the prospect of once again fighting in front of the Japanese crowds.
“I’m ready to fight, man. I’m ready to swing,” the former K-1 champ said with a laugh. “That’s what happening. Someone’s going out and it ain’t going to be me.”
All 22 additional fighters on the card met their required weight without incident, the most memorable of whom was UFC newcomer Rin Nakai. The former Queen of Pancrase walked to the stage sporting high heels, a half-Superman, half-stars-and-stripes bikini, and portions of a suit of samurai armor. Both she and her opponent, former Strikeforce champion Miesha Tate, weighed in at 135 pounds ahead of their bantamweight contest.
Complete UFC Fight Night 52 weigh-in results can be seen below.
Main card (3 a.m. ET on UFC Fight Pass)
Mark Hunt (264) vs. Roy Nelson (260)
Myles Jury (156) vs. Takanori Gomi (155)
Yoshihiro Akiyama (170) vs. Amir Sadollah (170)
Miesha Tate (135) vs. Rin Nakai (135)
Kiichi Kunimoto (171) vs. Richard Walsh (171)
Kyoji Horiguchi (125) vs. Jon Delos Reyes (125)
Undercard (12:30 a.m. ET on UFC Fight Pass)
Alex Caceres (135) vs. Masanori Kanehara (135)
Katsunori Kikuno (146) vs. Sam Sicilia (145)
Hyun Gyu Lim (171) vs. Takenori Soto (169)
Michinori Tanaka (135) vs. Kyung Ho Kang (136)
Kazuki Tokudome (155) vs. Johnny Case (156)
Maximo Blanco (146) vs. Dan Hooker (145)