Vieira Misses Weight By Seven Pounds For Cyborg Title Fight
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Ketlen Vieira weighed 152.2 pounds Friday for her PFL Tampa main event against Cris Cyborg, missing the featherweight championship limit by seven pounds and forcing the bout to proceed as a non-title catchweight affair.
Vieira will forfeit a percentage of her purse but the fight stays intact for Saturday night on ESPN, MMA Fighting and Sherdog reported. Cyborg hit 145 on the dot and posted video of her opponent's weigh-in mishap on social media, writing in Portuguese that her team would fight regardless. "Chute Boxe style. We don't care. Porrada. See you tomorrow," she wrote, per MMA Fighting's translation.
🎟️ Get tickets: Buy tickets to PFL Tampa on Ticketmaster →
Vieira Still Bitter About UFC Release Three Months Ago
The 34-year-old Brazilian was among several fighters cut by UFC in May despite holding a top-five bantamweight ranking and wins over two former champions. "I'm much better than many of the fighters who are there at bantamweight," Vieira told MMA Fighting after her release. "It's kind of unbelievable that they wouldn't renew my contract when there are many other fighters there who aren't on my level." She had just beaten Jacqueline Cavalcanti at UFC Vegas 117 and carried a 16-5 record into free agency.
The missed mark is Vieira's second weight failure as a pro. She competed at 135 pounds throughout her UFC tenure before moving up a division for her PFL debut. Cyborg told ESPN Brasil she learned of the weight issue upon arrival at the venue and said her team reached a catchweight agreement to salvage the card. "I think they were going to cancel the fight and everything, but there was a conversation to make sure the fight wouldn't get canceled," she said.
🎟️ Get tickets: Buy tickets to PFL Tampa on Ticketmaster →
PFL Tampa airs live on ESPN with prelims at 5:30 p.m. ET and the main card at 9 p.m. ET. Cyborg enters 29-2 and undefeated across eight Bellator and PFL appearances.
Reported via:
- MMA Fighting — Ketlen Vieira misses weight by 7 pounds for Cris Cyborg title fight at PFL Tampa
- MMA Mania — PFL debutant still mad about UFC release just missed weight by seven pounds for Cris Cyborg title fight
- Sherdog — PFL Tampa weigh-in results: Cris Cyborg's opponent misses weight by 7 pounds
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