Vanderford Debates Weight Class
Bellator MMA fighter Austin Vanderford is one of the top the prospects in the promotion, but he still has not settled into a weight class.
Vanderford (7-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) fought at a 175 pound catch weight in his debut in February. After previously fighting at welterweight in other organizations, he will fight at middleweight on Saturday night at Bellator 225 against Joseph Creer (6-0-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA).
“We’re using this fight as a gage to see how I feel,” said Vanderford at media day. “The weight cutting thing is tough, especially when you’re cutting 30 pounds.”
Weight cutting is a big debate in the sport and Vanderford himself debates on whether or not it is a good idea to cut a large amount of weight.
“Some days I wake up and check my weight and say to myself ‘I can make 170,” said the husband of UFC flyweight Paige VanZant. “I know I can always make it, its just do I want to do that to my body and continue to do that?”
Vanderford, 29, wants to fight for along time and he knows that his time limit in the sport can be affected by constantly cutting 30 plus pounds every fight.
“I’m in this sports for the long run and I want to be in this for a long time, but I think a heavy weight cut decreased that time for sure,” Vanderford said.
Vanderford, who is along time teammate of Chael Sonnen, will fight during the prelims of Saturday’s event from Bridgeport, Connecticut. Bellator 225 will air on Paramount Network.
