Jul-7-2006

‘Bitter Rivals’ Make Weight

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By Thomas Gerbasi

LAS VEGAS, July 7 – Both UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia and challenger Andrei Arlovski made weight today at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, making their mixed martial arts rubber match here Saturday a reality.

Ellsworth, Maine’s Sylvia, who regained the crown from Arlovski via a first round TKO on April 15, weighed in at 258.5.  

“The work’s over, and now’s the time to go in there and play,” said Sylvia.  “I want to beat him again, put him in the rearview mirror and get him out of the UFC.  It’s my time.”

Arlovski, a Belarus native who defeated the current champion by submission in their first bout on February 5, 2005, and who is looking to become just the third fighter in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship to win the heavyweight title twice, tipped the scales at 234 pounds.

Also making weight were longtime light heavyweight rivals Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock, whose grudge rematch is the UFC 61 – ‘Bitter Rivals’ co-feature, but it was not without a bit of controversy as Ortiz’ first attempt came in at 206.5, a half-pound over the allowed light heavyweight limit (which is 205 pounds, but upped to 206 for non-title fights).

Ortiz came back to the scale less than 10 minutes later and weighed in at 205 pounds.  Shamrock insisted though that the stress of having to lose the extra weight wouldn’t give him a mental edge tomorrow night.

“He’s used to making weight, it’s not gonna bother him a bit,” said Shamrock.  

Huntington Beach, California’s Ortiz stopped Shamrock in the third round of their first bout on November 22, 2002.  

Shamrock, 206, who hails from Susanville, California, claimed that a knee injury hindered his performance in their first bout and has campaigned for a rematch ever since, with the pre-fight trash talk between the two reaching levels rarely seen in the sport.

“I’m excited and I’m glad to be in the fight,” said Shamrock.  “It’s been a lot years that I’ve wanted this thing and I get to get in there and let all the talking be done tomorrow.”

UFC 61 airs live on pay-per-view from the Mandalay Bay Events Center beginning at 10pm ET / 7pm PT.

UFC Heavyweight Championship
Tim Sylvia, Ellsworth, ME, 258.5 vs Andrei Arlovski, Minsk, Belarus, 234

Tito Ortiz, Huntington Beach, CA, 206 (first attempt 206.5) vs Ken Shamrock, Susanville, CA, 206
Josh Burkman, Salt Lake City, UT, 169 vs Josh Neer, Des Moines, IA, 170
Dan Christison, Albuquerque, NM, 264.5 vs Frank Mir, Las Vegas, NV, 262
Joe Stevenson, Las Vegas, NV, 155 vs Yves Edwards, Conroe, TX, 154.5
Joe Jordan, Bettendorf, IA, 164 vs Hermes Franca, Fortaleza, Brazil, 158.5
Anthony Perosh, Sydney, Australia, 224 vs Jeff Monson, Olympia, WA, 236
Cheick Kongo, Paris, France, 229 vs Gilbert Aldana, Phoenix, AZ, 251
Kurt Pellegrino, Point Pleasant, NJ, 168.5 vs Drew Fickett, Tucson, AZ, 171