"It's bad for all these guys" - Anthony Pettis is against weight cutting
![Anthony Pettis [Image courtesy: @showtimepettis on Instagram]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/12/9a4da-16408955940257-1920.jpg?w=500)
Anthony Pettis has stated that if he could change one thing about MMA, it would be the weight-cutting process fighters often have to go through.
Over the course of his prestigious career, Anthony Pettis has competed at lightweight, featherweight and welterweight. The rigorous weight cutting he was forced to do at times clearly took its toll, as he stated during a recent appearance on The Jason Chambers Podcast:
"Weight cutting. Man, it's bad for all these guys. I think all these athletes, they don't understand, like, I've been doing it, I've been doing it for 14, 15 years now. Which is crazy. And like, we're talking about cutting 30 to 40 pounds. I fought at 145 and I'm walking around at 185, you know. So I'm cutting 40 pounds to get down there. It's so bad for your health. It's so bad for your mind [and] your mindset in general. That's why you see fighters balloon up. They get on these yo-yo diets."
Anthony Pettis belives weight cutting is limiting the sport of MMA
Anthony Pettis went so far as to state that weight cutting is having a legitimately negative effect on the sport. 'Showtime' believes MMA fighters are not able to compete to the full extent of their abilities because of the process their bodies have been through prior to their bouts.
Khabib Nurmagomedov has released footage of his weight cut for #UFC 254.
We’ve known for a long time that the cut is absolutely gruelling for him.
Seeing it, however, really rams it home. It’s difficult viewing.
🎥 via @TeamKhabib on YouTube https://t.co/UzGo0ZHDTD
The trade-off is, of course, that fighters gain a strength and size advantage that is needed to compete in the divisions in modern MMA.
"I think weight cutting, it's actually taking away from what MMA could be. Like, these guys could probably be doing way more. I could probably do a couple showtime kicks in a fight if I didn't cut 40 pounds before the fight."
You can check out the full interview with Anthony Pettis below:
Anthony Pettis does not currently have a fight scheduled, although he will likely be a part of the PFL's 2022 season. 'Showtime' did not have the best start to his PFL career in 2021, as he went 0-2 in the promotion.