Esteban Ribovics Blames Hotel AC for Weight Miss Before UFC 332 KO Win
Ribovics says hotel staff turned on the AC during his weight cut, then he went out and stopped King Green.
Esteban Ribovics says a hotel air conditioning unit sabotaged his weight cut before UFC 332. He still went out and knocked King Green out cold.
Ribovics missed weight for the lightweight bout in Salt Lake City after an unexpected disruption during his Thursday sweat session. According to Ribovics, hotel staff turned on the air conditioning in the workout room while he was cutting, which shut his body's sweating down completely.
"They turned on the air conditioning while we were just doing it and basically I stopped sweating," Ribovics told media after the fight, per Yahoo Sports. "We got cold and just stopped sweating."
The AC mishap forced Ribovics to push the remainder of his weight cut to Friday, leaving him unable to make the 156-pound lightweight limit. Despite the miss and the drama that followed, it did not seem to bother him inside the Octagon.
The tension started before the fight even began. Ribovics' team and Green's camp, which included boxer Arnold Barboza Jr., clashed outside the fighter hotel over the weight miss. The hostility carried right into the cage, with both fighters jawing at each other even as the referee stepped in to stop the contest in the first round.
The two fighters did shake hands afterward. Ribovics, now riding consecutive victories, said he is ready to face anyone in the lightweight division but stopped short of calling out a specific opponent.
"Keep talking, keep talking," Ribovics said of the pre-fight drama with Green's camp.
Missing weight because somebody turned the AC on in your sweat room is one of the more bizarre excuses I have heard in this sport. But honestly? I believe him. When your body stops sweating, the cut is over, and you are scrambling.
That said, missing weight is missing weight. You do not get a pass because the hotel thermostat was working against you. At this level, your team has to control every variable. Lock the door, tape over the vents, do whatever you have to do. That is on the camp as much as the hotel.
The performance itself was nasty though. Walking through all the pre-fight trash talk with Green's team and then putting him away in the first round is about as clean an answer as you can give. Ribovics has pop in his hands and he fights mean. The lightweight division should take notice. Next time, bring your own space heater.
KEEP TALKING FIGHTS.
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