– Paul Dollery reports from Las Vegas
CONOR McGREGOR IS a welterweight for the second time in his career after weighing in at 168lbs today for his rematch with Nate Diaz tomorrow night at UFC 202.
All 24 fighters on the card made weight at the Red Rock Casino, with Diaz tipping the scales at 170.5lbs — just inside the 171lbs limit for a non-championship welterweight bout.
Diaz submitted McGregor, the UFC’s featherweight (145lbs) champion, when they clashed last March at UFC 196, after the Irish fighter had made a significant jump up in weight against his American opponent, who usually fights at lightweight (155lbs) but had also competed as a welterweight on four previous occasions in the UFC.
New regulations determine that fighters must weigh in several hours earlier than would normally be the case in order to give them more time to rehydrate sufficiently.
Fighters had until 10am local time here in Las Vegas (6pm Irish time) to step on the scales. McGregor was the second-last of the 24 fighters to weigh in, arriving with about half-an-hour to spare.
The traditional weigh-ins in front of the fans, which are now merely a ceremonial formality, will take place at midnight Irish time at the Marquee Ballroom at the MGM Grand, where Diaz and McGregor will go head-to-head for the final time before tomorrow night’s bout.
A live stream of those weigh-ins will be available to watch by clicking here.
