Paul Felder successfully loses 14 pounds on five days' notice for UFC Vegas 14 fight with Rafael dos Anjos

Paul Felder had less than a week to cut down to 156 pounds for the fight he agreed to take against Rafael dos Anjos at UFC Vegas 14. Yet, despite the short notice, Felder successfully weighed in for the fight on Friday.

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Paul Felder weighs in at 155.75 lbs.

When Paul Felder was offered the fight five days before the event date, he weighed more than 170 pounds. During the Friday weigh-ins ahead of the event, he was the first to step onto the scales.

The results were impressive. Felder comfortably weighed in at 155.75 pounds, well within the non-title fight lightweight mark of 156 pounds.

⚖️ =155.75lbsLast in, first out! @felderpaul hits his mark 👊#UFCVegas14 | Saturday | BT Sport 1 HD pic.twitter.com/Gz8ZSM0fxo

— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) November 13, 2020

His opponent, the former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos, weighed in at 156 pounds.

Felder said on Ariel Helwani's MMA Show that under normal circumstances, taking a fight on such short notice would have been off the table, because he would weigh more than 195 pounds. But right now, he was in the range of 170 lbs., which made it possible for him to cut down that quick.

"So, I’ll give you that. I’m in the 70s. With some time and water-loading and dehydration, I’ll be fine."

In order to get started on cutting weight, Felder did not have anything but water between breakfast and dinner on the day he arrived in Las Vegas for the fight. 'The Irish Dragon' also said in the interview that he was not as worried about the weight cut as he was nervous about the fight itself.

Paul Felder and Rafael dos Anjos face off for their #UFCVegas14 main event. Can't beleive dos Anjos robbed us of an epic stache warpic.twitter.com/FPGpKLSVxh

— MMA mania (@mmamania) November 13, 2020

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What led to the unexpected matchup

There were no such talks of Rafael dos Anjos facing Paul Felder anytime soon before this fight was finalized. In fact, Felder was considered by many to be essentially retired from the octagon since his February outing against Dan Hooker. He had his hands full with being a commentator and color analyst for UFC.

But dos Anjos' original opponent Islam Makhachev had to pull out of the bout for a staph infection and the headlining bout fell one fighter short before the Fight Night.

Dos Anjos challenged Michael Chandler over social media, but the latter turned it down. UFC offered the fight to Felder, and he said yes to it.

Per UFC officials, none other than Paul Felder (@felderpaul) is stepping in on FIVE DAYS notice to fight Rafael dos Anjos. STILL a five round fight. STILL 155 pounds. Wow.

— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) November 9, 2020

Initially, Felder was supposed to be present at UFC Apex on Saturday night as a desk commentator and color analyst.

But he would have to leave his suits behind and don his fighting gear once again to save the main event of UFC Vegas 14.