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No, 180lbs is not a legitimate weight class in the UFC. Even though the weight falls well within the middleweight bracket, from 170 to 185 pounds, there is no official 180-pound weight division in the promotion.
The official welterweight limit for the UFC is 170 pounds and for middleweight, it is 185 pounds.
The UFC 279 fight between Khamzat Chimaev and Kevin Holland was contested at 180-pound catchweight because the Chechen was unable to make weight for his originally scheduled welterweight fight with Nate Diaz due to health issues.
In a recent interview with ESPN, Dana White explained that 'Borz' was advised not to go through with the weight cut by doctors. Chimaev triumphed in his catchweight bout against the American via first-round submission.
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Watch Dana White explain why Chimaev missed weight below:
Interestingly, three of the five fights on the main card were contested at catchweight.
The fight between Irene Aldana and Macy Chiasson was contested at a 140-pound catchweight. Aldana won the fight via a third-round K.O.
The three-rounder between Li Jingliang and Daniel Rodriguez was also contested at a 180-pound catchweight like Holland vs. Chimaev. 'D-Rod' won the bout via split decision.
The preliminary card fight between Jailton Almeida and Anton Turkalj also was contested at a 220 lbs catchweight instead of the 205-pound light heavyweight limit.
How did the UFC 279 fight between Khamzat Chimaev and Kevin Holland play out?
The catchweight bout between Khamzat Chimaev and Kevin Holland was action-packed, albeit a bit once-sided in the short window it lasted. The co-main event ended pretty quickly as 'Borz' submitted 'The Trailblazer' in just two minutes and thirteen seconds.
The co-main event quickly became a grappling clinic as the Chechen shot for a takedown barely two seconds into the fight. Even though Holland threw in some mad scrambles to escape his counterpart’s grip, he ultimately ended up failing
After a few scrambles, Chimaev ultimately locked in a D'Arce choke in the very first round, forcing a tap from the American.
In his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, the 28-year-old Swede said that he was looking forward to capturing UFC gold in both the welterweight and middleweight divisions:
"I'm going for both the weight classes [170lbs and 185lbs] so we take both belts"
Watch Khamzat Chimaev's post-fight interview below:
