5 times weight-cuts had disastrous consequences for MMA fighters

#3 Travis Lutter

A visibly emaciated Lutter

Travis Lutter went to appalling depths to “condition” himself for the fight against Anderson Silva. UFC 67 was right around the corner and the stage was set for Travis Lutter to challenge Anderson Silva for the title. The weight-cutting saw Travis return as an abominable version of his healthy self.

His lips were chapped and his body completely dehydrated. It looked as if he might have collapsed at any moment. He had lost the ability to shuffle and was merely sliding his feet across the ground. The dehydration bestowed upon him an appearance so frail it was as if he had starved himself to succour the weight-cut.

This wasn’t a healthy sign, considering the fact that he was locking horns with arguably the toughest fighter in the Ultimate Fighting Championship! Despite stripping down to his skin-suit, Lutter failed to make the 185lb limit which instead forced the competition to be a non-title bout. Lutter was successful in controlling Silva early in the fight but Silva being Silva, forced him to tap out in the second round! Had he not played around with his weight so much, things might have taken a different course.