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Multiple UFC Events See Weight-Cutting Issues and Fight Cancellations

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A Series of Weight-Miss Incidents Plague Early 2026 UFC Schedule
A string of fighters failing to meet contracted weight limits across multiple events in Las Vegas and Sydney has led to catchweight bouts, financial penalties, and a fight cancellation between January and June 2026.

UFC Vegas 115 (April 3, 2026)

Officials at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas recorded three failed initial weigh-ins for the April 4 card.

Weight Misses and Penalties

  • Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev: Initially weighed 207 pounds for his light heavyweight bout against Brendson Ribeiro (205). He was granted a second attempt and successfully weighed in at 206 pounds.
  • Rafael Estevam: Weighed 136.5 pounds for a bantamweight bout against Ethyn Ewing (135.5). The fight will proceed as a catchweight, with Estevam forfeiting 20 percent of his purse. This marks Estevam’s third instance of missing weight in the UFC, having previously missed twice at flyweight (125 pounds).
  • Darrius Flowers: Weighed 156.5 pounds for a lightweight bout against Lando Vannata (156). The fight will proceed as a catchweight, with Flowers forfeiting 20 percent of his purse.

Successful Weigh-Ins

All fighters for the top two bouts on the card successfully made weight:

  • Renato Moicano (156) vs. Chris Duncan (156) – Main event lightweight bout
  • Virna Jandiroba (116) vs. Tabatha Ricci (115.5) – Co-main event strawweight bout

UFC Vegas 118 (Date Unspecified)

At UFC Vegas 118, Junior Tafa initially weighed 206.5 pounds, 0.5 pounds over the light heavyweight limit for his fight with Iwo Baraniewski (206). After an unsuccessful second attempt, Tafa was granted a third try and weighed 206 pounds. Tafa accepted the fight on two weeks' notice as a replacement for Billy Elekana. This was Tafa’s second fight in 35 days, following a knockout win over Kevin Christian at UFC Perth in May.

Successful Weigh-Ins

  • Belal Muhammad (170.5) vs. Gabriel Bonfim (170.5) – Main event welterweight bout
  • Brendan Allen (185.5) vs. Edmen Shahbazyan (186) – Co-main event middleweight bout
  • Matt Schnell (129.5) vs. Alessandro Costa (129.5) – 130-pound catchweight bout

UFC 325 (January 31, 2026) – Sydney, Australia

The main event featured a featherweight championship rematch between Alexander Volkanovski (144.5) and Diego Lopes (145). Volkanovski previously defeated Lopes by unanimous decision at UFC 314.

Weight Miss and Fight Cancellation

Aaron Tau was the only fighter to miss weight among the 28 scheduled competitors. During his first attempt, Tau used a privacy box and registered 122.5 pounds. Commission officials, noting that he appeared to use his arms on the box to reduce his weight, requested a second weigh-in without the screen. On the second attempt, Tau weighed 129 pounds, exceeding the non-title flyweight limit. His Road to UFC Season 4 flyweight tournament final bout against Namsrai Batbayar (126) was cancelled.

Tau later issued a statement on Instagram: “I need to apologize to my opponent, the UFC, my team, and my fans. Though I pushed to the end, I have one job, to make weight and fight. I didn’t do that. I’m sorry.”

Successful Weigh-Ins

  • Dan Hooker (155.75) vs. Benoit Saint Denis (155.75) – Co-main event lightweight bout
  • All other 26 fighters on the card successfully made weight.

UFC Vegas 113 (Date Unspecified)

Four fighters missed weight at the official weigh-ins for UFC Vegas 113: Muin Gafurov (141 pounds for bantamweight), Gianni Vazquez (141 pounds for bantamweight), Wang Cong (127.5 pounds for catchweight), and Eduarda Moura (127 pounds for catchweight).

Penalties and Adjustments

  • Muin Gafurov: Missed weight for the first time in his five-fight UFC career. His fight against Jakub Wiklacz (135.5) will proceed as a catchweight, with Gafurov forfeiting 25 percent of his purse.
  • Gianni Vazquez: Vazquez’s weight miss followed a short-notice call to replace Said Nurmagomedov (withdrew due to visa issues). Vazquez had competed at 125 pounds in his previous bout. His fight against Javid Basharat (135.5) will proceed as a catchweight, with Vazquez forfeiting 25 percent of his purse.
  • Wang Cong and Eduarda Moura: Both fighters missed weight for their scheduled bout. Their contest will proceed as a catchweight, with neither fighter incurring a purse penalty.

Successful Weigh-Ins

  • Mario Bautista (135.5) vs. Vinicius Oliveira (136) – Main event bantamweight bout
  • Kyoji Horiguchi (126) vs. Amir Albazi (125.5)

UFC Vegas 119 (June 19-20, 2026)

The main event was a flyweight rematch between Manel Kape (126) and Kyoji Horiguchi (125). Kape defeated Horiguchi by knockout at 2:42 of the third round, extending his streak to four consecutive victories, all by knockout.

Weight Miss

  • Kevin Borjas: Weighed 129 pounds, three pounds over the non-title flyweight limit, for his bout against Andre Lima. The fight proceeded at a catchweight, with Borjas forfeiting 20 percent of his purse.

Prior Weigh-In Incidents (January 2026)

  • At UFC 324 (January 24, 2026), Cameron Smotherman fainted after stepping off the scale, leading to the cancellation of his bout against Ricky Turcios.
  • The following week at UFC 325, Aaron Tau was caught attempting to cheat on the scale, resulting in the cancellation of his bout and his release from the promotion.