5 UFC fighters who cut incredible amounts of weight

Weight-cutting is a gruesome process that many UFC fighters have to go through. Competitors need to meet the weight limit of their division to be eligible for the fight. Failing to do so can result in a hefty fine.

Weight-cutting is a process that involves dehydrating your body during fight week to meet the weight limit. There have been horrific scenarios where fighters have passed out on the weighing scale due to the adverse effects of rapid weight loss.

UFC bantamweight Julia Stoliarenko passed out during her official weigh-in and had to be carried out on a stretcher a few months ago.

Many UFC personalities like Paul Felder and Michael Bisping have gone on record to criticize the infamous practice. But despite the backlash, weight-cutting is still a part of the UFC, and it does not seem to be going away anytime soon.

On that note, let's look at five current UFC fighters who cut large amounts of weight before their fights.

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#5. Josh Emmett (UFC featherweight)

It becomes clear when looking at Josh Emmett that he is too big for the featherweight division. The 36-year-old had issues with weight-cutting in the past, missing weight by 2.5 pounds ahead of his fight against Ricardo Lamas in December 2017. The fighter cut 42.5 pounds in just three weeks to meet the weigh-in limit.

The featherweight fighter has not missed weight since. Emmett revealed that before the pandemic, he used to walk around at 188 lbs. But he was back in shape in time for his fight against Shane Burgos in June 2020. The 'Team Alpha Male' fighter weighed in at 146 pounds and went back to around 170 pounds on the night of the fight.

#4. Jose Aldo (UFC bantamweight)

Former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo raised eyebrows when he moved down to the bantamweight division. Doubts about the Brazilian's ability to meet the limit of 135 pounds were not unfounded. He had difficulty making weight for his fight against Max Holloway at UFC 218 while competing as a featherweight.

Aldo has walked around at 170 pounds for the majority of his career. So, to compete at bantamweight, he needs to cut approximately 35 pounds, about 20 percent of his total body weight.

But the Brazilian has proved many wrong by making the bantamweight weigh-in limit multiple times over the last couple of years.

Before his fight against Petr Yan for the bantamweight title at UFC 251, the former 145-pound champion revealed it had been easier for him to cut down to 135 pounds than it was to cut down to 145.

“I’m happy to be a part of this, and the cut for 135 has actually been a lot easier than it was at 145. We adapted everything for me to move down in weight so my nutrition and everything else, and I really feel like I rejuvenated my body. It gave me a lot of energy, so I’m keeping my weight down more than I was before, and so that cut down to 135, I’m still feeling a lot better after that cut.”

Aldo's last fight took place in December 2020. He defeated Marlon Vera via decision in the bantamweight bout.

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#3. Paulo Costa (UFC middleweight)

One fighter who has long been considered too big for his weight class is former middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa. The California State Athletic Commission advised Costa to move up a weight class ahead of his fight against Yoel Romero at UFC 241.

But surprisingly, 'The Eraser' has never missed weight in his entire UFC career. A month and a half before his fight with Israel Adesanya at UFC 253, 'Borrachinha' walked around at 220 pounds. But Costa still cut 35 pounds to make championship weight for the UFC 253 main event.

So, it does not look like 'The Eraser' will be moving up a division anytime soon.

#2 TJ Dillashaw (UFC bantamweight)

One of the most horrific weight-cutting stories of recent times involves former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw. In January 2019, Dillashaw decided to move down to flyweight in a chance to attain champ-champ status.

The weight-cut, as expected, was terrible. The images ahead of his flyweight championship bout with Henry Cejudo were horrifying.

LOL and some of you were really coming at me when I said TJ would kill himself trying to make flyweight. This is hard to see honestly. pic.twitter.com/bg3zYkodnI

— Tony 🇮🇹 (@BigToneTrader) January 5, 2019

The 35-year-old cut 29 pounds for the fight, around 19.1 percent of his total body weight. Dillashaw said his body started to 'crash' a month and a half before his fight with 'The Messenger.'

"I pushed my body to the extreme. About six weeks out, my body started to crash, it started to get tired. I started feeling like I didn't want to get up for practice," TJ Dillashaw said.

Not only did the former 135-pound champion lose the fight to Cejudo, but he also tested positive for EPO. The drug-test violation earned him a two-year suspension. The Colorado native then stated that he only took EPO to make the flyweight weigh-in limit.

Dillashaw will make his return to the octagon on July 24 against Cory Sandhagen at UFC Vegas 32. The fight will take place at 135 pounds, which many will agree is the best option for the 35-year-old.

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#1. Deiveson Figueiredo (UFC flyweight)

Deiveson Figueiredo takes the top spot on this list because he missed weight in a championship fight.

In February 2020, 'Deus da Guerra' came in 2.5 pounds above the weight limit for his flyweight title bout against Joseph Benavidez. Before that, the Brazilian fighter cut 39 pounds in three months for his fight against Jussier Formiga.

To this day, Figueiredo faces issues with cutting weight as he looks depleted during weigh-ins.

Many have attributed Figueiredo's recent loss to Brandon Moreno at UFC 263 to a bad weight cut as well.

Deiveson Figueiredo doesn’t rule out move to bantamweight after rough weight cut for UFC 263 https://t.co/9XiRMbN0UW pic.twitter.com/Z7VIXps2RO

— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) June 15, 2021

The former 125-pound king is contemplating a switch to bantamweight, where he can perform to his full potential without stressing over cutting weight.