John Lineker came in over the bantamweight limit for his first defense of the ONE Championship belt Thursday in Malaysia and lost his title on the scale, multiple people with knowledge of the situation told MMA Fighting.
“Hands of Stone” was slated to defend his throne against Fabricio Andrade at ONE on Prime Video 3 on Friday in Kuala Lampur, Malaysia. Lineker will be fined 20 percent and the bout will go ahead as planned. Lineker will no longer be eligible for the belt. However, Andrade will become the bantamweight champion.
The unique system at
ONE Championship doesn’t permit fighters to rehydrate. The bantamweight limit at ONE is 145 pounds. Lineker passed the hydration test but came in at 145. 5 pounds, SCMP first reported. He returned hours later, and was heavier than before (145.75).
“If a fighter does not lose weight at ONE, he returns to square zero. He must also pass the hydration testing.” Lineker’s manager Alex Davis explained to MMA Fighting. The mistake occurred because Lineker’s scale in his bedroom was lighter than the official. If that happens you can make another attempt at weight gain but must pass again the hydration test. He couldn’t do it.
“Having two attempts to make weight in three hours is a bit complicated. This is the standard and we will respect it. Fabricio agreed to fight and John will be able to tell us about his situation .”
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According to SCMP, Jeremy Miado and Uali Kurzhev failed the hydration/weight check.
