Heavyweight fighter Shamil Gaziev claims he weighed 140 kilograms at the start of his training camp and has since cut down to 119.85 kilograms ahead of UFC Perth. This represents a significant weight cut of over 20 kilograms during his fight preparation. Gaziev competes in the heavyweight division, which has a 120 kg weight limit. The Russian fighter's dramatic weight fluctuation highlights the challenges some heavyweights face with weight management between fights. He is scheduled to compete at the upcoming UFC Perth event.
Shamil Gaziev has revealed a striking detail about his preparation for UFC Perth, disclosing that he entered his training camp weighing 140 kilograms and has since trimmed down to 119.85 kilograms — just under the heavyweight division's 120-kilogram limit.
The weight reduction of more than 20 kilograms across a single camp underscores the kind of dramatic body-composition management that some heavyweights undertake between fights. Gaziev, competing at the sport's largest weight class, will need to come in at or below that 120-kilogram threshold when he steps on the scales ahead of his bout at the Perth event.
Gaziev, 36, fights out of Bahrain under the KHK MMA banner and holds a professional record of 14-3-0. Ranked eleventh in the UFC's heavyweight division, the six-foot-four orthodox striker carries a 78-inch reach and brings a measured but effective striking game to the Octagon, landing 2.62 significant strikes per minute at a 47 percent accuracy rate. He also threatens with a modest takedown presence, averaging 0.93 takedowns per 15 minutes.
Why it matters
- Gaziev sits just inside the top-15 heavyweight rankings at number eleven, making a strong performance at Perth important for his divisional positioning.
- His size — 193 cm and a 198 cm reach — combined with a starting camp weight of 140 kg suggests he enters fights carrying significant natural mass, which can be a physical advantage at heavyweight.
- The camp-weight revelation highlights ongoing weight-management demands even in a division with one of the sport's most generous limits.
