Dan Argueta, Josh Fremd, and Jared Gooden have some explaining to do.
The three fighters competing at UFC Vegas 98 all failed to make weight at Friday morning’s official weigh-ins, with Argueta (138.5) missing by 2.5 pounds, Fremd (186) by 3 pounds, and Gooden (172.5) by 1.5 pounds. Their respective opponents Cody Haddon, Abdul Razak Alhassan, and Chidi Njokuani all successfully made weight.
It is not yet known which of the bouts, if any, will proceed as catchweights and, if so, what percentage of the offending fighters’ purses will be forfeited as penalty.
The misses are a particularly bad look for Fremd and Gooden, both of whom have been tripped up by the scale in the past.
For the second time in his UFC career, Fremd weighed in three pounds over the limit. He also came in at 189 pounds for a middleweight bout against Jamie Pickett at UFC Vegas 78 in August 2013, later going on to defeat Pickett by unanimous decision.
Gooden has now missed weight three times as a UFC fighter. Most recently, he came in six pounds over the limit for a fight with Carlston Harris in March 2023, though on that occasion he had accepted the bout on less than a week’s notice. He is 0-2 after failing to make weight.
In more positive news, flyweight headliners Brandon Royval and Tatsuro Taira successfully weighed in for Saturday’s main event, with both registering at 125.5 pounds. Royval is currently tied for the No. 2 spot in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, with the undefeated Taira at No. 8. Whoever leaves UFC Vegas 98 with a win might also put themselves in pole position for a shot at flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja.
See official UFC Vegas 98 weigh-in results below.
Main Card (ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET)
Brandon Royval (125.5) vs. Tatsuro Taira (125.5)
Brad Tavares (185) vs. Jun Yong Park (185.5)
Chidi Njokuani (170.5) vs. Jared Gooden (172.5)*
Grant Dawson (156) vs. Rafa Garcia (154.5)
Daniel Rodriguez (170) vs. Alex Morono (170.5)
Abdul Razak Alhassan (186) vs. Josh Fremd (189)*
Preliminary Card (ESPN+ at 4 p.m. ET)
CJ Vergara (126) vs. Ramazan Temirov (125.5)
Jonathan Pearce (145) vs. Pat Sabatini (145)
Themba Gorimbo (170.5) vs. Niko Price (170.5)
Julia Polastri (115) vs. Cory McKenna (115)
Junior Tafa (241) vs. Sean Sharaf (252)
Dan Argueta (138.5)* vs. Cody Haddon (135)
Clayton Carpenter (125.5) vs. Lucas Rocha (125.5)
*missed weight
