It looks like Ronny Markes has a problem. A reasonably strong run in the UFC came to a halt on the tail of back to back losses, the last of which amid allegations that Markes had failed to take his weight cut, and perhaps his training camp, seriously. Markes missed weight for his bout against Thiago Santos by 5 lbs; he was dropped by the first hard body shot Santos landed.
After that poor performance, Markes found himself quickly on the outside of the UFC looking in. He returned to his original weight class of 205 lbs, and was soon signed up by the World Series of Fighting. Markes faced Cully Butterfield in his debut, weighing in at the 206 lb limit. Still, he made weight and took a clean decision. Now it appears Markes’ weight cutting demons are back.
Just one day out from his planned light heavyweight tournament bout against Dave Branch at World Series of Fighting 20: Branch vs. Markes (yes, Markes was set to headline), Markes was forced out of his spot on the card due to “a case of dehydration.” Since it’s a tournament bout, WSOF made sure to keep replacement fighters on hand.
Stepping in for Markes will be the 5-1 Jesse McElligott. McElligott had been scheduled to face Steve Skrzat on the undercard. Skrzat will be receiving his full fight purse for the cancelled bout. So far, WSOF isn’t giving a ringing endorsement for tournament MMA, as both halves of their 4-man LHW bracket have been hit by last minute injuries. Hopefully tomorrow’s bout goes off without a hitch and they can get to the final intact.
WSOF 20 takes place on April 10th, here’s a look at the card as it stands right now:
NBCSN Card:
David Branch vs. Jesse McElligott
Nick Newell vs. Joe Condon
Ozzy Dugulubgov vs. Lucas Montoya
Phoenix Jones vs. Emmanuel Walo
Steve Mocco vs. Juliano Cuitanho
Online Streaming Card:
Chris Foster vs. Saul Almeida
Darren Mima vs. Johnny Campbel
Matt Secor vs. Chip Moraza-Pollard
Leon Davis vs. Islam Mamedov
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