Two-time Olympic judo gold medalist Kayla Harrison is making her debut in the UFC 300 octagon against former champion Holly Holm, and for the first time in her career, she is cutting to bantamweight, a move her coach Mike Brown believes will be beneficial and expects her to be dominant in the new weight class.
Kayla Harrison’s got a lot on her plate. She’s facing former champ Holly Holm in her UFC 300 debut. But the real drama? It’s happening 24 hours before she even steps into the cage.
For the first time ever, she’s cutting to bantamweight. She’s spent most of her career at 155 pounds, barring one featherweight and a single 150-pound catchweight fight. Everyone’s talking about her slimming down and staying competitive. But her head coach, Mike Brown, isn’t sweating it.
“I thought she could do it,” Brown said to MMA Fighting. “It’s a commitment, sure. It’s not easy, but it’s a weight cut.” He pointed out that she wasn’t really cutting weight at 155. She was fighting at lightweight, but she wasn’t a lightweight. She was fighting bigger girls in the PFL. Brown thinks her cutting some weight is actually going to be beneficial.
“Is 135 the perfect weight for her? I don’t know,” Brown said. “Probably 145 [pounds] is, but lightweight definitely isn’t her weight. She was fighting much bigger girls.”
Harrison’s been documenting her body changes on social media. She’s still ripped and looking in shape. She hasn’t shown any signs of struggles as she’s slowly but surely dropped the necessary weight.
Brown acknowledged that Harrison will undoubtedly endure some struggles in those final hours. But that’s pretty much standard for most fighters competing at this level. “I notice she’s leaner,” Brown said. “She’s always improving and now she’s a little more shredded.”
She’s cleaned up her diet. Not that she was eating badly before, but she probably was eating as much as she wanted. Now she’s probably a little more restrictive on how much she eats and a little leaner. As she gets closer, her nutritionist might have her drop the calories a bit. Practices might get a bit tougher because she’s going to be a little lower in calories. But once the weight cut’s over and she’s able to refuel and replenish…
“I’m more than confident she’s going to be just fine in the cage,” Brown said. “She’ll be big and strong and I think she’ll be dominant. I expect her to win and be the best fighter in that weight class or any weight class.”
For all the questions and concerns about Harrison’s weight, Brown hasn’t spent much time contemplating what that will mean come Saturday. If anything, he’s expecting the best version of Harrison the world has ever seen.
“She’s in position to make it,” Brown said. “She has good people around her. She’s got Eric Pena helping her weight cut. He’s got a lot of experience, knows what he’s doing. He’s more than comfortable with it. I’m comfortable with it. I’m confident. I don’t think it’s going to be a problem. I think she’ll be better than ever.”
Perhaps the biggest motivation that will keep Harrison on track to make weight will be the opportunity to finally face stiffer competition in the UFC. She largely ran roughshod over her opponents in the PFL outside of a lone loss to Larissa Pacheco, who she had already defeated twice previously.
That’s just another reason why Brown felt Harrison made the right move jumping to the UFC where she will compete on the biggest stage of her career.
“That’s why it was time,” Brown said. “[PFL] was a great place for her to start, to get her feet wet, learn how to fight. She went from zero fights into the PFL to 10 to 15 to 17 or 18 fights, whatever she has now. A veteran, a seasoned, world class mixed martial arts fighter. Obviously when she started there, she was not. She was a very talented, impressive prospect but there’s not substitution for experience and that was a perfect place to get it.
“I think the division really needs it. I think the division is really hurting for a star like Kayla. A dominant, impressive athlete like her. Obviously, she’s just operating at a different level. Since a very early age, training judo at a very high level, 100 percent focused, obviously has great genetics. Just the whole package. Now an experienced mixed martial arts resume as well. She’s at the top of her game and ready to take on any challenger out there. I think this is what the bantamweight division needed in the UFC, someone like Kayla.”