Issue 082

December 2011

Ray Sefo

Veteran six-foot, 240lb K-1 and Strikeforce heavyweight

YES

I really 100% believe there should be a cruiserweight division, and it should go up to around 230lb with the heavyweight limit moving up to 275lb. You have these big guys like ‘Bigfoot’ Silva and Brock Lesnar who have to cut from almost 300lb, and that’s a lot. Then there are also guys in the same division, like Cain Velasquez, who don’t have to cut weight at all and, as great as a fighter as he is, he could probably fight as a cruiserweight. I mean that guy, like myself and say Pat Barry, we have no problem fighting at heavyweight but we could all compete at 230lb. There is currently a 40lb difference between 225lb and 265lb so there is plenty of room there for another division. Here is an example: we had Fedor, who weighed in at 230lb, and Bigfoot who cut 20lb to make it down to 265. By fight night he would definitely have put a lot of that weight back on, where Fedor would have been the same – that means Fedor gave away around 50lb.

Todd Duffee

Former UFC six-foot-three, 250lb heavyweight, 6-2

NO

Daniel Cormier wrestled at the Olympics and weighed what, 197lb I think, and he’s just beaten ‘Bigfoot’ – one of the biggest guys in the heavyweight division who weighs 280lb. Then you have Velasquez that weighs 240lb but has beaten Lesnar to win the title, who cuts down to 265. The thing about the heavyweight division is that it will always be considered the very best division. The heavyweight champion is the champion of champions, that’s how it has always been and always will be. In the future there may be scope for another division in there, but at this point in time we are still in the infancy of MMA and there just aren’t enough heavyweights out there to break up the division… And here is my example too, look at Randy Couture, a natural 205lb fighter; he whooped Tim Silvia’s ass, who cut down to 265. The heavyweight division is the man’s division. You are the man if you are the heavyweight champion – and the smaller heavyweights are dominating right now too.

What you had to say on the matter ...

YES

“Definitely! There can be a 60lb weight gap [in the heavyweight division]. That’s like a featherweight fighting a light heavyweight! José Aldo vs Jon Jones?” 

@20PIERRE09

NO

“No, most guys in the 220–30lb range could cut to 205lb if they were so inclined. Forrest Griffin is a perfect example.”

@SAM_ROBSON

NO

“No. Heavyweights are usually 235lb-plus. At that point it’s not about being close in weight, it’s about who connects with whose face first.”

@NG_MMA170

YES

“Small heavyweights such as ‘Cro Cop’, Fedor, Pat Barry etc. would benefit from a cruiserweight division and we wouldn’t have to have size mismatches.”

@MDACOSTAMMA