Two fighters will be forced to move up in weight for future bouts in California following their dramatic weight gains at Bellator 290, including featherweight veteran Henry Corrales, who led the card with a 26.6-pound gain between weigh-ins and fight night.
The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) on Monday released the event’s fight night weight report to MMA Fighting, which tracks the gains athletes make prior to stepping in the cage.
Corrales weighed in at 172.2 pounds on fight night after initially stepping on the scale at 145.6 pounds for his featherweight bout with Akhmed Magomedov, which he won via unanimous decision. That 18 percent increase was tied for the largest increase of all 28 fighters who competed on the Feb. 4 card, prompting CSAC officials to suspend Corrales from fighting at or below 145 pounds at future events regulated by the CSAC.
Alejandra Lara received the other local weight suspension after tipping the scales at 148.6 pounds on fight night for her 128.8-pound catchweight bout with Diana Avsaragova, which she lost via split decision. Lara initially weighed in at 125.8 pounds, meaning her 22.8-pound gain before fight night represented an 18-percent increase of her total body weight. Lara will be unable to compete in the flyweight division in California moving forward.
Fighters are allowed to appeal their weight suspensions by providing a doctor’s clearance to compete safely at a certain weight.
Notably, the night’s headliners — heavyweights Ryan Bader and Fedor Emelianenko — actually lost weight between weigh-ins and fight night. Bader dropped from 234.4 pounds to 231.8 on fight night, while Emelianenko dropped from 236.2 pounds to 235.4.
Bader ultimately defeated Emelianenko via first-round TKO to defend his Bellator heavyweight title. The fight served as Emelianenko’s retirement bout from MMA.
The complete list of Bellator 290’s fight night weights can be seen below.