In MMA, skill and toughness alone don’t crown champions—fighters win or lose on the scales. Not only does weight determine a division, but it also steers betting lines, anchors contracts, and drives the financial engine of every event. Yet despite its importance, fighters still turn the weigh-in into one of the sport’s most delicate battlegrounds. For instance, consider January’s Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 311. Missing weight left the title fight dangling in midair and threw Dana White & Co. into a scramble.

Since then, fighters have repeatedly missed weight throughout the year, with each slip threatening to unravel months of meticulously built hype. Last month, in September, UFC 205er Kelvin Gastelum missed weight at UFC Noche, prompting fans to call for action. Now, as October arrives, the

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