Two bizarre situations mar UFC 210 weigh-ins

Image: MMA Weekly

For 2:24, it appeared that Saturday’s rematch between UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier vs. Anthony “Rumble” Johnson at UFC 210 was off.

Cormier weighed in naked behind a towel at 206.2 pounds, 1.2 pounds above the championship limit. Weigh-in time had nearly expired and had no more time to drop weight. However, due to a New York state athletic commission championship clause, he came back just 2:24 later, again stripped naked behind a towel, and hit 205 pounds.

There was also some question about whether Cormier grabbed the towel during the weigh-in which could have thrown things off. 

The fight is official, but it’s telling that Cormier struggled to make weight. A minute afterward at the deadline, Johnson weighed at 203.8 pounds. The irony is that Johnson spent a few years of his career struggling to make weight at several weight classes.

The only other incident anyone could remember like that was when Gina Carano was 142.75 pounds for a fight in Florida in 2008, and then stripped and somehow make 141.0 on the nose as people wondered exactly how her underwear could have weighed 1.75 pounds.

 However, that was only part of today’s controversy.

A fight between strawweights Pearl Gonzalez and Cynthia Cavillo was temporarily pulled after both had made weight. Why? Because Gonzalez has breast implants, something NYSAC doesn’t allow even though UFC fighters with breast implants have competed in NY State before.

Late in the afternoon, the fight was back on after a review by the NYSAC.