“It was new for me” - Alibeg Rasulov admits to making mistakes in cutting weight for ONE Fight Night 23 title fight

Undefeated lightweight MMA star Alibeg Rasulov of Turkey failed to weigh in successfully prior to his interim world title shot at ONE Fight Night 23 against South Korea's Ok Rae Yoon.

This made him ineligible to win the belt, despite scoring a unanimous decision victory over the former divisional kingpin at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand last week.

ONE Championship prohibits athletes from cutting water weight -- an old and dangerous practice in combat sports to gain a competitive advantage. Instead, the promotion requires athletes to submit a hydration sample, encouraging them to compete at their natural weight class.

Rasulov admits this system was new to him, hence the difficulty making the lightweight limit.

Speaking to the South China Morning Post, Rasulov explained what happened at the weigh-ins.

The 31-year-old Hyperion Fighters representative said:

"It’s my first time in ONE Championship and all the requirements about the weight classes and all the stuff. It was new for me, so I had to do the weight cut like twice. That’s why I can say that I can fight much better and because I cut weight two times so it’s like [fighting] four five rounds. It was a really good experience for me."

Fans in the United States and Canada can catch a replay of ONE Fight Night 23 absolutely free and on-demand via Amazon Prime Video.

Alibeg Rasulov says he's ready to go again after tough fight with Ok Rae Yoon: "I didn't take a lot of damage"

Unbeaten Turkish star Alibeg Rasulov can't wait to face reigning ONE lightweight MMA world champion 'The Warrior' Christian Lee, and he may very well be next in line.

Rasulov told ONE Championship:

"It's all going to depend on ONE Championship. I'm not injured, I feel pretty good. I didn't take a lot of damage, so I'm going to be ready. I'm ready for the fight if there's a fight. My weight is always good, so I'm going to be ready all the time."