The Association of Boxing Commissions today voted unanimously to add four new weight classes to the unified rules of MMA, increasing to 13 the number of recognized divisions in the sport.
The new weight classes include:
- 165 pounds (super lightweight)
- 175 pounds (super welterweight)
- 195 pounds (super middleweight)
- 225 pounds (cruiserweight)
The authors of the rule change stressed that promoters are not required to use the weight divisions – and may never. ABC rules and regulations committee chairperson Sean Wheelock today told MMAjunkie the new divisions are “absolutely not” meant to dilute the talent pool and remake MMA into something more resembling boxing.
But the hope, according to ABC’s medical chair Andy Foster, is that more divisions will keep fighters from cutting extreme amounts of weight to fit into the divisions currently popular in the sport.
Is CSAC's plan for curtailing MMA's extreme weight-cutting problem going far enough?
Foster, the California State Athletic Commission’s executive director and a leader in weight-cutting reform, pressed members that the dehydration of MMA fighters is the sport’s biggest issue. He said that while the CSAC could on its own implement a 10-point plan to curb excessive weight loss, the new divisions are critical to the sport’s regulation among ABC member commissions.
Foster said the new divisions might not make a huge impact initially. He admitted UFC reps already have expressed concern at the elimination of the welterweight class. But he said as fighters migrate to the new divisions or begin their careers there, promoters could shift to accommodate the demand.
“If you’ve got a bunch of fighters at 170 and this body eliminates (the welterweight class), that’s a terrible business idea,” he said. “But they understand the problem with dehydration. I know the UFC is not going to open 175 this afternoon. But it sets it up for the future.”
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