MINNEAPOLIS — I was live today at the UFC 87 weigh-ins and it was quite the interesting experience. Quinton Jackson and Wanderlei Silva were both in attendance and got huge reactions when they came out in front of the crowd. It seems Wanderlei will be in the corner of Demian Maia for his fight against Jason MacDonald. If Maia can add some wild muay thai skills to his already amazing submission game, we could have a future world champion in our midst.
Interestingly enough, every single fighter made their weight and did not take advantage of the extra one pound. Luke Cummo came to the scale and didn’t strip anything off and weighed in at 167.
Georges St-Pierre and Jon Fitch both look ready to go tomorrow night. While I believe GSP will win this fight, I think it will be one of his toughest tests to date. Fitch can make history, though, if he wins this fight by becoming the first fighter to win his first nine UFC fights. Winning eight in a row is a huge accomplishment in itself and he should go down in UFC lore if he beats GSP for the title tomorrow night.
There was a pretty good crowd at Target Center. I’m curious to see how vocal the crowd is tomorrow. St-Pierre was the overwhelming crowd favorite, even moreso than local boys Brock Lesnar and Roger Huerta.
This was also my first weigh-in experience and the UFC does a great job of keeping the crowd engaged before the fighters hit the scales by playing the event’s countdown show beforehand. Watch that great program made the time fly by.
Had the chance to sample some Xyience energy drink on the concourse and it’s not too bad.
I believe I spotted the family of Jon Fitch in the common area of a shopping center. They were all wearing his stuff and the older gentleman in the group (presumably his dad) was wearing a Toe 2 Toe cap, one of Fitch’s biggest sponsors.
After that, we walked by the fighter’s hotel, the Marriott City Center, and I caught a photo with official UFC cutman Jacob “Stitch” Duran. Real nice guy and was accomodating to all fans, as I saw him taking pictures with a ton of people at the weigh-in itself.
All in all, a good day. Getting the entire experience has really enhanced this event for me. From the press conference yesterday to the weigh-in today to the event tomorrow, the UFC really does a good job in letting each fan get their money’s worth. Now it’s just up to the card itself to deliver. Should be a good one!
LIGHTS OUT RADIO UFC 87 COVERAGE:
UFC 87 Photo Gallery
UFC 87 Preview Show
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