With the depth at lightweight growing by the month in the UFC, those guys who have run into a brick wall for a title shot, are dropping to 145 pounds. Add Tyson Griffin and Kenny Florian to list of fighters working to shed more weight and fight at featherweight.
Florian was a good-sized lightweight, so the immediate reaction is - how will cut another 10 pounds? The New England-native did his homework.
"I put a lot of thought into it, spoke with my coaches and everybody involved and decided that I am going to try it. I'm going to go for it," Florian told Franklin McNeil, his partner on MMA Live. "I started playing around with the idea: could I make 145? Originally, I didn't think it was possible."
The 5-foot-10 Florian, who was once the runnerup on Season 1 of "The Ultimate Fighter" at 185 pounds, consulted with experts.
"I spoke with a few nutritionists, got their opinions, told them what my body fat was, my walking-around weight, all that stuff and the general consensus was that it was very possible." said Florian.
His manager said that Florian doesn't expect a title shot right off the bat. He'd like a few fights at featherweight to adjust to the weight cut.
Florian (14-5, 11-4 UFC), ranked No. 6 in the USA Today/Bloody Elbow Lightweight top 25, has been a force in the UFC, but he had difficulty getting past former lightweight champ B.J. Penn and was dominated by the current No. 1 contender Gray Maynard.
While it waits for younger fighters to move up the ladder, the UFC's featherweight division could use the infusion of experienced talent. The promotion toyed with the idea of having Florian and Aldo meet at a catchweight, but the fight fell through.
The USA Today/BE featherweight rankings have UFC fighters ranked throughout the top 15 (3. Manny Gamburyan; 4. Michihiro Omigawa; 6. Diego Nunes; 9. Mark Hominick; 10. Dustin Poirier; 12. Chad Mendes; 13. Josh Grispi; 14. Mike Brown). Hominick is scheduled to face Aldo at UFC 129 in April. Beyond that there's no glamour matchup on the horizon for Aldo.
Down the road, Griffin could also be in the mix. Before a UFC 90 loss to Sean Sherk, He was inching toward a title shot. Since then, he's struggled with injuries and conditioning issues. He's also mired in a three-fight losing skid at 155.
"I’ve got some big plans for 2011, and unfortunately they’re put on hold right now, but those plans are to move to 145 and make a run for that belt. So you can see me at a new weight class looking stronger and better than ever hopefully,” Griffin on his website.
He also needs to rehab from recent knee surgery.
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