What happens when a UFC fighter misses weight?

In the world of combat sports, everything is about weight. From determining the class in which a combatant will fight to, quite frankly, the odds for betting, the importance of weight can’t be stressed.

What does it mean to ‘make weight?’

When two fighters agree to fight, it’s usually only after an extensive contractual process in which things like the purse are decided upon and the weight category they will fight. Once that’s over, the ‘grind’ begins as they must train and arrive at the agreed weight. In other words, they’ve got to ‘make weight.’ Assuming they do so, the fight goes on as decided, and both men and women step into the cage or ring. Occasionally, however, a fighter doesn’t arrive at the designated weight in time, and then there is a problem.

What about ‘missing weight?’

As you can probably guess, to miss weight means when a fighter weighs more than the contractually agreed weight limit for the specified weight class in which they compete. If you’re wondering what the weight classes in the UFC are, then let’s take a look together:

Interestingly, the UFC does grant some wiggle room - not much - in that for UFC title bouts, a fighter can be no more than 0.5 pounds over the weight limit, while in non-title bouts, a leeway of one pound over the weight limit is allowed. Is this all that important? Absolutely. While a pound or two may not seem like a big deal, it can give a fighter a significant advantage. That’s precisely why the process is strictly regulated and adhered to.

What happens when a fighter misses weight?

Typically, if a UFC fighter misses weight for the morning weigh-in window the day before the fight, the state athletic commission can allow them an additional hour to make the weight. If they fail to do so again, the UFC will more often than not ask the fighter’s opponent if they are willing to accept the fight at a “catchweight.” A catchweight is a weight limit negotiated and agreed upon by both fighters. That being said, the fighter who failed to make weight will usually be asked to forfeit between 20 and 30 percent of the purse depending on far off the weight mark they were. The UFC also penalizes the offending fighter by disallowing post-fight bonuses.

What happens when a fighter misses weight in a UFC title fight?

If an individual who misses weight is also a UFC Champion, what happens typically is that they will be forced to vacate the belt. Their opponent is the only one who can win the world title, such that if even the fighter who missed weight wins, the title remains vacant. We saw this example in UFC 274 when Charles Oliveira was scheduled to defend his UFC lightweight championship against Justin Gaethje. Oliveira missed weight and was forced to vacate the title, meaning that only Gaethje could win the lightweight title. Ultimately, Oliveira won the fight, but as you can imagine, the title remained vacant due to him missing weight.

What happens if the opponent does not agree to the catchweight?

Though it’s not common, there have been times when an opponent has decided not to face an individual over the agreed weight for the fight. In such a case, the UFC generally has two options: cancel the fight OR find a new opponent on short notice. One can imagine it’s not a simple task where the second option is concerned.

Quite literally, the UFC would have to find not only an opponent but one who can make weight in a single day. This is extremely difficult to achieve and even more so when considering the weight aspect and the tactical preparation. With that said, the UFC has been known to have a ‘backup’ weigh-in when title fights are on the cards, just in case one of the fighters involved misses weight.