MONTREAL – Tensions were high at the UFC 158 pre-fight press conference Thursday, but the stakes were raised on Friday as Georges St-Pierre and Nick Diaz needed to be separated by UFC president Dana White at the weigh-ins.
The challenger Diaz weighed in at 169 pounds, while the defending welterweight champion St-Pierre tipped the scales exactly at the 170-pound limit.
As the two squared off, they both went right at one another. They were staring at one another for less than two seconds before Diaz pushed St-Pierre’s fist away from his face with his elbow.
White stepped in between the two immediately so the situation wouldn’t escalate. Both fighters then turned to the crowd with their arms in the air. Diaz was showered with boos, while GSP was cheered by his hometown crowd.
“I can talk as much as I want, but tomorrow I’m going to walk the walk. That’s all I can say,” St-Pierre told UFC commentator Joe Rogan after the weigh-ins.
Diaz, who yesterday on Tim & Sid on Sportsnet 590 The Fan accused GSP of being on steroids, is a 4-to-1 underdog heading into Saturday’s main event at the Bell Centre.
“We’re going to get out there and fight,” Diaz said. “We’re going to see what’s going to happen.”
Most weigh-ins are uneventful affairs — dehydrated fighters step on the scales and square off for a photo — however Friday’s event was far from uneventful.
Beside the shenanigans that surrounded St-Pierre and Diaz, there were a handful of instances that had the few thousand fans in attendance at the Bell Centre oohing, awing, gawking and laughing.
Kicking off the show, bantamweights George Roop and Reuben Duran got in one another’s faces before White stepped in between them. You can see that fight live on Sportsnet.ca Saturday starting at 6:30 p.m. ET / 3:30 p.m. PT.
Then, welterweight Dan Miller, who welcomes Alberta’s Jordan Mein to the UFC, initially came in at 172 pounds, one pound over the allowable limit. He was forced to drop his trunks and step on the scale naked (with a towel covering him). The crowd whistled and cheered as Miller finally weighed in at 171 pounds.
Also in the welterweight division, Quebec’s Patrick Cote looked lean and muscular while coming in at 169 pounds for his UFC welterweight debut against Strikeforce veteran Bobby Voelker.
Once Cote made weight, he celebrated by opening a box of cookies and even offered his opponent one. The two chewed away while squaring off while fans laughed.
The 24 fighters slated to compete on the card, including Canadians Mike Ricci, Nick Ring, John Makdessi and Antonio Carvalho all made weight.
Here are the results from the UFC 158 official fighter weigh-ins:
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)
— Georges St-Pierre (170) vs. Nick Diaz (169)
— Carlos Condit (169) vs. Johny Hendricks (171)
— Jake Ellenberger (170) vs. Nate Marquardt (171)
— Chris Camozzi (185) vs. Nick Ring (183)
— Colin Fletcher (155) vs. Mike Ricci (156)
PRELIMINARY CARD (Sportsnet East, Ontario, West & Pacific, 7 p.m. ET)
— Patrick Cote (169) vs. Bobby Voelker (169)
— Antonio Carvalho (145) vs. Darren Elkins (145)
— Jordan Mein (170) vs. Dan Miller (171)
— Daron Cruickshank (155) vs. John Makdessi (155)
— Quinn Mulhern (168) vs. Rick Story (169)
— TJ Dillashaw (135) vs. Issei Tamura (135)
BONUS PRELIM (Sportsnet.ca at 6:30 p.m. ET)
— Reuben Duran (135) vs. George Roop (135)
