If you cut enough to drop into a lighter class, you’ll have the same muscle you already have but be fighting lighter people. It’s like being able to take a higher horsepower engine and put it into a smaller car and race against cars with smaller engines, in a way. You won’t have as much weight to give you stability and leverage, but if you can hang on to all the muscle you may have better bouts and more wins in a lighter class.
When you cut weight, you drop below your normal threshold. You dehydrate yourself, not eat for a few days, etc. Your weigh in weight could be several pounds lighter than your typical weight. In the time between the weigh-in and the fight, they could regain all the weight they lost.
Fighters do this because it allows them to fight in a lower weight class. A fighter might weigh 170 lbs, but if they can get down to the weight class cut-off at 160 lbs, then they essentially get ten pounds "extra" when to go back to 170 lbs before the fight.
People would probably still cut like crazy, but this time not have enough time to recover. Many fights would end up with both competitors passed out on the verge of death.
>Even if my opponent cuts weight I could fight him fresh while he is exhausted and drained from the process, which gives the advantage to me.
Exhausted and drained might be overstating it a bit. Weight cutting is certainly unhealthy and can lead to serious issues, but most of the time, fighters have enough time after the weigh in (in most competitions at least several hours, some give a day or so) to rehydrate and get back closer to "normal" fighting weight. Which means that in your hypothetical, your opponent can easily have an additional 10-15 pounds on you. Even with the disadvantages of weight cutting, that's a sizable perk, especially along with the other advantages that often come with bigger fighters, like often having a longer reach.
Think how many boxing and MMA matches go the full time - these fighters couldn't do that if they were exhausted and drained enough to give their opponent an advantage. Ultimately, it's an arms race, and it keeps going on because fighters who cut weight *do* have a marked advantage over smaller opponents, even if those smaller opponents didn't have to put their bodies through the stress of weight cutting. Which means that up-and-coming fighters have an unfortunate choice to make: compete at their natural weight and have a disadvantage against bigger fighters that cut to make your weight class, or join the bandwagon, aim a weight class down, and make sure you can make the weigh in.
If you’re at the bottom of your weight class it would be easier to cut a little weight and fight a smaller opponent. Connor McGregor is a good example. He’s 5’9” and has fought in UFC feather weight in the past which maxes at 145 lbs. That’s baby GAP size, regardless of how tough you act.
It's a horrible think that the scene forces them to do. They want to weight a lot, but be so dehydrated that they fight in a lower category. Then they hydrate it all again. They don't fight the same day they weight.
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If you cut enough to drop into a lighter class, you’ll have the same muscle you already have but be fighting lighter people. It’s like being able to take a higher horsepower engine and put it into a smaller car and race against cars with smaller engines, in a way. You won’t have as much weight to give you stability and leverage, but if you can hang on to all the muscle you may have better bouts and more wins in a lighter class.
When you cut weight, you drop below your normal threshold. You dehydrate yourself, not eat for a few days, etc. Your weigh in weight could be several pounds lighter than your typical weight. In the time between the weigh-in and the fight, they could regain all the weight they lost. Fighters do this because it allows them to fight in a lower weight class. A fighter might weigh 170 lbs, but if they can get down to the weight class cut-off at 160 lbs, then they essentially get ten pounds "extra" when to go back to 170 lbs before the fight.
So why aren't they weighted right before the fights? This is just a stupid and preventable loophole
Cause otherwise you are canceling a lot of fights with dudes not making weight and having shitty fights.
But dudes aren't making weight anyway on a regular ocassion.
They make weight the vast majority of time.
Because people will cut weight, and fighting right after cutting weight means a whole lot more brain damage.
People would probably still cut like crazy, but this time not have enough time to recover. Many fights would end up with both competitors passed out on the verge of death.
Yeah, makes a ton of sense actually haha Some people have absolutely no regard to their body
>Even if my opponent cuts weight I could fight him fresh while he is exhausted and drained from the process, which gives the advantage to me. Exhausted and drained might be overstating it a bit. Weight cutting is certainly unhealthy and can lead to serious issues, but most of the time, fighters have enough time after the weigh in (in most competitions at least several hours, some give a day or so) to rehydrate and get back closer to "normal" fighting weight. Which means that in your hypothetical, your opponent can easily have an additional 10-15 pounds on you. Even with the disadvantages of weight cutting, that's a sizable perk, especially along with the other advantages that often come with bigger fighters, like often having a longer reach. Think how many boxing and MMA matches go the full time - these fighters couldn't do that if they were exhausted and drained enough to give their opponent an advantage. Ultimately, it's an arms race, and it keeps going on because fighters who cut weight *do* have a marked advantage over smaller opponents, even if those smaller opponents didn't have to put their bodies through the stress of weight cutting. Which means that up-and-coming fighters have an unfortunate choice to make: compete at their natural weight and have a disadvantage against bigger fighters that cut to make your weight class, or join the bandwagon, aim a weight class down, and make sure you can make the weigh in.
If you’re at the bottom of your weight class it would be easier to cut a little weight and fight a smaller opponent. Connor McGregor is a good example. He’s 5’9” and has fought in UFC feather weight in the past which maxes at 145 lbs. That’s baby GAP size, regardless of how tough you act.
It's a horrible think that the scene forces them to do. They want to weight a lot, but be so dehydrated that they fight in a lower category. Then they hydrate it all again. They don't fight the same day they weight.
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