Joanna Jedrzejczyk defied speculation of weight-cut struggles as she tipped the scales inside the 116lbs limit to ensure her strawweight main event bout with Michelle Waterson at UFC Fight Night in Florida will go ahead.
The build-up to the pair’s fight in Tampa had been buffeted by claims that Poland’s Jedrzejczyk had told the UFC that she would not make the limit for the bout.
That led to a scrambling of scenarios over whether the pair could meet at catchweight, whether the fight would be postponed, or if others could step in.
But all of that was rendered redundant when Jedrzejczyk registered 115.5lbs on the scales on Friday morning, eliciting cheers from those in attendance.
‘Karate Hottie’ Waterson earlier came in at 115lbs, and with the main event locked down, that allowed UFC chief Dana White to vent at what he suggested were misleading claims it was ever in jeopardy in the first place.
“Don’t believe ANYTHING you read,” White tweeted as he shared footage of both fighters making weight.
Jedrzejczyk’s supposed weight-cut woes have been the source of much speculation among MMA fans in recent days.
Theories have ranged from whether she was merely playing mind games with her opponent, whether it was the UFC attempting to muster added interest in the card, or that the Polish fighter was in fact struggling, but found extra motivation to make the mark.
What if the UFC is making up Joanna Jedrzejczyk missing weight to draw headlines to the card?
I predict Joanna will weigh in at 116 or less.
— UFCStats