Although intensity will be off the charts at UFC 168 Saturday night in Las Vegas, fighters were relatively calm as they stepped on the scales for the official weigh-ins Friday.
In the main event, Anderson Silva looks to regain the middleweight title he held for nearly seven years as he takes on champion Chris Weidman, the man that knocked him out just five months ago.
PROGRAMMING ALERT: Watch the UFC 168 preliminary card Saturday on Sportsnet 360 starting at 8 p.m. EST / 5 p.m. PST and catch two bonus prelims on sportsnet.ca at 7 p.m. EST / 4 p.m. PST
Silva stepped on the scale at an even 185 pounds and put his hands up in a fighting stance during his staredown with Weidman, something the 38-year-old hasn’t typically done at weigh-ins throughout his UFC career.
The Brazilian—who will be the challenger for the first time since UFC 64 in 2006 when he fought then-champ Rich Franklin—was criticized for playing around and dropping his hands in his first meeting with Weidman. “Great show for all the people. That’s it. Belt back,” Silva said bluntly in his broken English.
Weidman, who weighed in at 184 pounds, will improve to 11-0 as a pro if he can become the first man to defeat Silva (33-5) more than once. “It means everything,” Weidman said. “This is the biggest fight of my life and I’m excited to go out and do my thing. This is my time.”
Some felt the 29-year-old got lucky the first time around and the New York native said he has sacrificed time with his family to prove his UFC 162 victory was no fluke. “I can’t miss Christmas for no reason,” Weidman added on the UFC 168 post-weigh-ins show.
It’s no secret that UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey and her top rival Miesha Tate dislike one another intensely. But, while many expected tempers to boil over at the weigh-ins, the two women didn’t engage in an extracurricular activity.
The Ultimate Fighter 18 coaches will meet in the co-main event, 21 months after Rousey submitted Tate to become Strikeforce champ by dislocating Tate’s elbow with a first-round armbar.
Of the 22 athletes scheduled to compete at the UFC’s final event of 2013, only one fighter missed weight.
TUF 14 featherweight winner Diego Brandao stepped on the scale at 153 pounds for his fight with Dustin Poirier, which was seven pounds over the 146-pound limit for non-title featherweight bouts. Poirier was not happy that Brandao missed weight and yelled at his opponent after the two squared off.
Brandao has been fined 25 per cent of his purse for missing weight with half going to Poirier and half going to the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Here are the official UFC 168 weigh-ins results:
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view at 10 p.m. EST)
— Chris Weidman (184) vs. Anderson Silva (185)
— Ronda Rousey (135) vs. Miesha Tate (135)
— Josh Barnett (252) vs. Travis Browne (242)
— Fabricio Camoes (156) vs. Jim Miller (156)
— Diego Brandao (153)** vs. Dustin Poirier (146)
PRELIMINARY CARD (Sportsnet 360 at 8 p.m. EST)
Uriah Hall (185) vs. Chris Leben (185.5)
Michael Johnson (156) vs. Gleison Tibau (156)
Manny Gamburyan (146) vs. Dennis Siver (145)
Siyar Bahadurzada (171) vs. John Howard (171)
ONLINE PRELIMS (sportsnet.ca at 7 p.m. EST)
— William Macario (171) vs. Bobby Voelker (171)
— Estevan Payan (145) vs. Robert Peralta (145.5)
** Diego Brandao cut an additional 1.5 pounds to officially weigh in at 151.5 pounds. Poirier agreed to meet at a catchweight and the bout will remain on the card.
