The top welterweight prospect was well over the 170kg limit (including a 1kg allowance) at Friday’s official weigh-ins, tipping the scales at 178.5kg, which forced him to pull out of his main event bout with Nate Diaz and caused a reshuffle of the top three fights on Saturday’s card. Diaz is now fighting Tony Ferguson in the main event, while Tsymaev is locked in a competitive bout with Kevin Holland. UFC president Dana White announced Saturday’s roster changes on Sportscenter via Instagram Live and also commented on the medical issues Chimaev has faced as he tries to cut weight. “He was already very, very thin and should have gained weight,” White said. “He started losing weight and started locking up and cramping and all the things that happen from a bad cut. “Unlike 10 years ago when we did this, they call us, we send a doctor and a doctor decides whether he should continue to lose weight or not and the doctor said he shouldn’t.” White did not clarify whether Chimaev’s issues were taken into account when he was put in the match against the Netherlands. This is the first time Chimaev has missed weight in the UFC after previously competing in both the 170 and 185 pound divisions. On the marketing side, White agreed with the suggestion that the booking of the Chimaev vs. Holland fight was a fluke given the existing bad situation between the fighters, which only escalated during a brawl backstage at Thursday’s UFC 279 press conference ( which was subsequently cancelled) . According to Chimaev’s trainer Andreas Michael, Chimaev connected with “a boot to the chest” in Holland. “Yesterday, there were a lot of questions about what happened,” White said. “Kevin Holland and Hamzat Chimaev actually went behind the scenes yesterday. Ironically, they will now fight on Saturday night.”
