What a morning Friday turned out to be for the UFC faithful.
The UFC 279 weigh-ins were as tumultuous as the previous day’s press conference, if not more so. Three fighters missed weight, one fight was shifted to a catchweight mid-weigh in, and the card essentially lost its main event, all in the span of just a few hours.
The big story was Khamzat Chimaev coming in heavy, 7.5 pounds over the welterweight limit for his fight with Nate Diaz. That’s the sort of chasm that the Nevada Athletic Commission generally doesn’t allow; with Chimaev forgoing any additional weight cut, a lot came down to the rules and regs, and what opponent Diaz was willing to accept. The strong rumor — a Diaz/Tony Ferguson main event, and Chimaev facing Kevin Holland in the co-feature.
Nothing is official as of this writing, however.
TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter reported later in the day that Ferguson’s opponent, Li Jingliang, had been offered a bout with Holland’s original foe, Daniel Rodriguez. Further hinting at what was to come.
Chris Barnett and Hakeem Dawodu were the other names to miss weight Friday, while the women’s bantamweight match-up between Irene Aldana and Macy Chiasson shifted to a 140lb catchweight. Barnett, who fights for the first time since the death of his fiance earlier this year, will likely get a pass under the circumstances, and given the miss was small (1.5lbs). The others, not so much.
Norma Dumont and Danyelle Wolf both weighed in with a barrier, but successfully made weight.
Full UFC 279 weigh-in results and a gallery of highlights can be found below.
UFC 279: Chimaev vs. Diaz Weigh-In Results
Main card
Welterweight: Khamzat Chimaev (178.5)* vs. Nate Diaz (171)
Welterweight: Li Jingliang (170.5) vs. Tony Ferguson (171)
Catchweight (180lb): Kevin Holland (179.5) vs. Daniel Rodriguez (179)
Catchweight (140lb): Irene Aldana (137.5) vs. Macy Chiasson (139.5)
Light Heavyweight: Johnny Walker (205) vs. Ion Cuțelaba (205.5)
Preliminary card
Featherweight: Hakeem Dawodu (149.5)** vs. Julian Erosa (146)
Catchweight (220lb): Jailton Almeida (216.5) vs. Anton Turkalj (214)
Middleweight: Denis Tiuliulin (186) vs. Jamie Pickett (185.5)
Heavyweight: Jake Collier (265) vs. Chris Barnett (267.5)***
Early preliminary card
Women’s Featherweight: Norma Dumont (146) vs. Danyelle Wolf (146)
Bantamweight: Chad Anheliger (135.5) vs. Alateng Heili (135)
Women’s Strawweight: Melissa Martinez (113.5) vs. Elise Reed (115.5)
Welterweight: Darian Weeks (170.5) vs. Yohan Lainesse (171)
* Chimaev misses weight by 7.5lbs for his fight with Nate Diaz, will not continue his weight cut.
** Dawodu misses weight by 3.5lbs for his featherweight fight with Julian Erosa. He will not attempt to cut any additional weight, per UFC officials
*** Barnett misses weight by 1.5lbs, will not continue his weight cut.
