Poirier and Pettis Make Weight for UFC Norfolk, but One Main Card Fighter Misses
UFC Fight Night 120: Poirier vs. Pettis lands in Norfolk, Va., this week with a strong fight card for Veteran's Day weekend.
After the fighters stepped on the scale at the official weigh-in on Friday morning, a pivotal lightweight tilt between No. 8 ranked Dustin Poirier and No. 13 ranked Anthony Pettis got the green light.
Poirier is trying to find his way into title contention after a no contest decision in his last bout because his opponent, Eddie Alvarez, landed several illegal knees that halted the contest in the second round. Pettis is a former UFC lightweight champion who has struggled to a 2-4 record over the past couple years, dabbling at featherweight before returning to lightweight in his most recent bout.
One of the more exciting fights on the card is the welterweight co-main event between Matt Brown and Diego Sanchez. Both men have a lengthy history in the Octagon and are each known to fight as much with heart as they do with skill.
Adding to the anticipation for Brown vs. Sanchez is the idea that Brown has been considering retirement following the fight.
Former heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski is literally fighting for his career in Norfolk. Coming off of five consecutive defeats heading into Saturday's bout, he faces tough young Brazilian Junior Albini, who is riding a 10-fight winning streak. Arlovski needs a victory if he is to justify remaining in the cage.
Nearly everyone on the card made weight and did so rather quickly. Main card fighter Matthew Lopez was the lone exception.
The last athlete to get on the scale, Lopez is slated to meet No. 4 ranked Raphael Assuncao in Norfolk, but stepped on the scale at 138.5 pounds, 2.5 pounds above the 136-pound limit for a bantamweight non-title fight. Though there was no official word at the time of publication, the typical case for such a scenario is that the fight would continue with Lopez being fined a percentage of his fight purse.
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UFC Fight Night 120: Poirier vs. Pettis Weigh-in Results
Main Card (10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT on FS1)
Dustin Poirier (156) vs. Anthony Pettis (155.5)
Matt Brown (171) vs. Diego Sanchez (170)
Junior Albini (265.5) vs. Andrei Arlovski (244)
Nate Marquardt (185.5) vs. Cezar Ferreira (185)
Raphael Assuncao (135.5) vs. Matthew Lopez (138.5)*
Joe Lauzon (155) vs. Clay Guida (155)
Preliminary Card (8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on FS1)
John Dodson (135.5) vs. Marlon Moraes (136)
Tatiana Suarez (115) vs. Viviane Pereira (114.5)
Sage Northcutt (155.5) vs. Michel Quinones (155)
Angela Hill (115) vs. Nina Ansaroff (115)
Preliminary Card (6:30 p.m. ET / 3:30 p.m. PT on UFC Fight Pass)
Court McGee (170) vs. Sean Strickland (169.5)
Jake Collier (205.5) vs. Marcel Fortuna (205.5)
Darren Stewart (184) vs. Karl Roberson (184.5)
Tune in to MMAWeekly.com on Saturday, Nov. 11, for full UFC Fight Night 120: Poirier vs. Pettis Live Results and Fight Stats.
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