ONE Championship has implemented a new protocol for its weigh-in and hydration test system.
The changes will start with this week’s ONE Fight Night 25 event at Lumpinee Stadium. Thursday evening’s official checks at Bangkok’s Best Western Wanda Grand Hotel begin at 5pm local time.
Any athlete who does not pass hydration and/or make weight within the first hour of the official three-hour testing window will now be fined 20 percent of their contracted fight purse.
However, if they pass hydration and make weight in the remaining two hours of the window, the fight will proceed – and the 20 percent fine will be donated to a charity of the opponent’s choosing.
If an athlete provides a hydrated sample during the three-hour window but does not make weight, they may negotiate a catchweight with their opponent, as long as they are within 105 percent of the lighter athlete’s official weight.
The aforementioned 20 percent fine – and possibly more, depending on the negotiation – will instead now go to the opponent, provided they made weight and passed hydration.
If a hydrated sample is not submitted or the athlete exceeds the 105 per cent weight limit for a catchweight, the match will be cancelled.
Previously, athletes had the full three hours to make weight and pass hydration, before incurring any penalties.
Even if they failed, they could still come back after the window to provide a hydrated sample, weigh in, and negotiate a catchweight – while giving up a percentage of their purse to their opponent, without a fine from the promotion.
ONE’s official weigh-ins for its Fight Night and numbered events on Amazon’s Prime Video service have often seen multiple fighters fail to make weight and pass hydration.
Rarely do the fights not still go ahead, however, with those athletes usually agreeing catchweight bouts on each monthly card.
Five fighters – Kiamrian Abbasov, John Lineker, Smilla Sundell, Jon Di Bella and Mikey Musumeci – have lost their ONE Championship titles on the scale after failing to make weight and/or pass hydration during the previous official three-hour window.
In November 2022, South Korea’s Ham Seo Hee refused to fight Itsuki Hirata at a catchweight, after the Japanese fighter missed weight.
Di Bella and Musumeci withdrew from their respective fights this year after losing their belts on the scale, with both going to hospital feeling sick.
ONE’s official weigh-ins and hydration tests can be conducted between 24 and 48 hours before an event’s start time, according to the new rules.
The specific weigh-in time will be set by ONE and/or the sanctioning body.