Merab Dvalishvili says he has gained 19lb (1st 5lb) in simply 5 hours after weighing in for his bantamweight title struggle in opposition to Petr Yan at UFC 333 on Saturday.
The Georgian weighed 135lb (9st 9lb), which was the identical as Russian champion Yan, earlier than the pair’s co-main occasion struggle in Abu Dhabi.
Dvalishvili later uploaded a video to Instagram displaying the 35-year-old stepping on scales and weighing 154lb (11st 0lb).
“I have been ingesting water and in solely 5 hours I acquire again 19 kilos, that is what we do, let’s go,” he mentioned.
“Now I am again ingesting and recovering. Now I’ll begin consuming. Eat meals first, then tomorrow you guys already know who I’ll eat.”
Fighters usually reduce weight by shedding water within the days earlier than a bout, earlier than rehydrating to regain weight – a course of that may present a bodily benefit contained in the octagon.
The UFC has taken a variety of steps to make weight cuts safer over time, together with banning IV drips, which forces fighters to hydrate in a more healthy means, and constructing the Efficiency Institute, which gives steerage for its athletes from skilled well being specialists.
UFC fighters are advisable to lose not more than 8% of their physique weight throughout struggle week.
On struggle night time they’re advisable to remain inside 10% of their weight class.
Dvalishvili is aiming to win again the title he misplaced in opposition to two-time champion Yan final December.
Throughout their face-off, the pair engaged in an intense however respectful stare-down.
In the primary occasion, champion Alexander Volkanovski and Movsar Evloev each made weight earlier than their featherweight world title contest.
Australia’s Volkanovski is trying to earn a report ninth win in UFC featherweight title fights in opposition to Russia’s Evloev, who’s undefeated in 20 bouts.
On the undercard, British flyweight Lone’er Kavanagh takes on Uzbekistan’s Ramazan Temirov.
The 27-year-old Kavanagh is aiming to bounce again from defeat by American Brandon Royval in July.
