Are weight categories pointless?

Discussion in 'World Boxing Forum' started by Dodgy Syrup, Mar 21, 2019.


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  1. Dodgy Syrup

    Dodgy Syrup Active Member banned Full Member

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    I know they kind of aren't in specific cases, but what I mean is, should the weight a fighter has to be at the weigh in the day before/of, compared to what they weigh standing in the corner waiting for the bell to start round 1, be the same?

    I rewatched GGG vs Jacobs the other day and people in the comments were arguing that Jacobs looked huge at middleweight and must have been anywhere from 170 to 175, some even thought he was heavier than that.

    He certainly didn't look 160.

    The point being, if you think about it, what is the point having weight classes and weigh ins when they don't represent the real fighting weight prosribed by the officials from the division being contested?

    Does anything think Canelo is 160 lbs, on the nose, not a gram over, when he fights?

    Was Spence Jnr bang on 147 lbs when the bell went for round 1 last week against Garcia?

    If we are going to have the official weigh in shouldn't it be 2 hours before the fight?

    Have one the day before, or the morning of the fight, and then several hours before the fight they could/should be weighed again.

    People will say "but if one fighter is over and there's 50,000 people on their way to the arena and millions around the world on t.v, you can't just call it off 2 hours before".

    I ask, why?

    Why can't you have rules and enforce them?

    It's the responsibility of fighters to be at their weight, the weight they are meant to be fighting out, when they are officially weighed...its that simple.

    If Canelo can't make 160 after rehydration, and ends up in the ring closer to 170+, why is he not fighting as a light heavy taking on guys who are the same size?

    Is it because the guys at light heavy will be doing the same and consequently wont be 175 but more like 185-190 when the bell goes?

    It's all a bit of a farce if you start to think about it.

    A fighter should be the official weight, as specified by their class, when the fight starts.

    Does anyone disagree?

    Is it unworkable?

    Unnecessary?

    Just thinking out loud, as it's something I've discussed with family before and I wondered what others thought.
     
    Dodgy Syrup, Mar 21, 2019
    Dodgy Syrup, Mar 21, 2019
    #1
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  2. h8me

    h8me Member Full Member

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    Just imagine the biggest fight of the year, full stadium, everything prepared and one fighter does not make a weight. No one would buy tickets to boxing events and the sport would be dead.
     
    h8me, Mar 21, 2019
    h8me, Mar 21, 2019
    #2
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  3. james5000

    james5000 2010's poster of the decade Full Member

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    Yes, my favourite fight will never happen because of weight classes.

    Deontay vs Lomachenko, I'd pay $150 ppv to watch Loma fan boys watching that fight.
     
    james5000, Mar 21, 2019
    james5000, Mar 21, 2019
    #3
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  4. Jackomano

    Jackomano Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    The only solution is going back to same day weigh-ins, since with supplements that can be taken by IV through a medical exemption I've seen some fighters balloon up to 25-30 lbs 195-200lbs for a 175lb fight and it gets even worse at the lower weight classes.
     
    Jackomano, Mar 21, 2019
    Jackomano, Mar 21, 2019
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  5. Angler Andrew

    Angler Andrew Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    Lol didn't Fury say he'd fight Lomochenko?
     
    Angler Andrew, Mar 21, 2019
    Angler Andrew, Mar 21, 2019
    #5
  6. RealDeal

    RealDeal Pugilist Specialist Full Member

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    The reason you don’t want same day weigh-ins is because of the dangers, especially the higher risk of brain injury due to depleted cerebral fluid, that go along with fighting dehydrated.
     
    RealDeal, Mar 21, 2019
    RealDeal, Mar 21, 2019
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  7. Angler Andrew

    Angler Andrew Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    It's all part of being a pro boxer I guess?as long as they keep it real it is what it is,for instance Crawford was literally killing himself to fight midgets.I've long called Canelo but I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't mention someone like Andrade who is an absolute giant of a man at middleweight,let alone 154lbs.
    I don't think anyone's interested in watching another Gatti v Gamache,Canelo v Khan,Golovkin v Brook or more recently the fiasco that was Spence v Garcia.
     
    Angler Andrew, Mar 21, 2019
    Angler Andrew, Mar 21, 2019
    #7
  8. PernellSweetPea

    PernellSweetPea Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    I think have the same say weigh ins, but also monitor the fighters so you don't have a guy so dehydrated he has a health risk.
     
    PernellSweetPea, Mar 21, 2019
    PernellSweetPea, Mar 21, 2019
    #8
  9. Dirsspaardis

    Dirsspaardis Boxing Addict Full Member

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    That’s kind of his point though. It’s about not giving anyone time to rehydrate and should force people to fight in the weight classes they belong in. At the moment it seems to be a competition of who’s able to loose the most weight for a day and then put it back on in a day or two, fighting comes second.
     
    Dirsspaardis, Mar 22, 2019
    Dirsspaardis, Mar 22, 2019
    #9
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  10. Dirsspaardis

    Dirsspaardis Boxing Addict Full Member

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    Do you think the number of people dropping huge amounts of weight for the fight night would stay the same if same day weight ins were enforced?
    I don’t think so.
     
    Dirsspaardis, Mar 22, 2019
    Dirsspaardis, Mar 22, 2019
    #10
  11. Dodgy Syrup

    Dodgy Syrup Active Member banned Full Member

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    That doesn't make sense.

    If you are 175 after rehydration then you aren't a middleweight.

    Like I said, if you only have to be a set weight at a specific time and place, one time, it's pointless and doesn't reflect the actual reality.
     
    Dodgy Syrup, Mar 22, 2019
    Dodgy Syrup, Mar 22, 2019
    #11
  12. RealDeal

    RealDeal Pugilist Specialist Full Member

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    How does it not make sense? When they used to do same day weigh-ins, guys would still dehydrate themselves to make weight. The only difference was they would not have as much time to rehydrate themselves before the fight, so they were typically a few pounds lighter on fight night than modern fighters. And because they were still dehydrated during the fight, it opened them up to increased risk. When you are rehydrating, the cerebral fluid that protects your brain from banging into your skull is one of the last fluids in your body to replenish itself. Obviously, I don’t need to explain why that is bad news for a boxer. This was the main reason they moved weigh-ins to a day before the fight. Fighters are always going to try to get whatever advantage they can within whatever rules or system is in place, so they are always going to dehydrate themselves to fight at as low of a weight class as they can effectively perform at. You could have weigh-ins two hours before the fight and guys would still be dehydrating themselves and then trying to rehydrate as fast as possible. When I used to compete in bodybuilding competitions, I would easily gain 10 to 15 pounds of water / food weight within a couple hours of the show ending.
     
    RealDeal, Mar 22, 2019
    RealDeal, Mar 22, 2019
    #12
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  13. LANCE99

    LANCE99 Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Educate this noob quickly please...
     
    LANCE99, Mar 22, 2019
    LANCE99, Mar 22, 2019
    #13
  14. Ivan28

    Ivan28 Active Member Full Member

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    Corruption.The same with doping test.
     
    Ivan28, Mar 22, 2019
    Ivan28, Mar 22, 2019
    #14
  15. Ph33rknot

    Ph33rknot Live as if you were to die tomorrow Full Member

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    should happen if you want to risk brain damage well **** it
     
    Ph33rknot, Mar 22, 2019
    Ph33rknot, Mar 22, 2019
    #15
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