UFC 267 title bouts official after fighters make weight but Khamzat Chimaev struggles

Light-heavyweight champion Blachowicz and challenger Teixeira both hit the scales at 205lbs

Light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz weighs in before UFC 267 at the Hilton Hotel, Yas Island in Abu Dhabi on Friday, October 29. All photos Chris Whiteoak / The National

Light heavyweight challenger Glover Teixeira weighs in before UFC 267.

Bantamweight Petr Yan weighs in before UFC 267.

Middleweight Albert Duraev weighs in before UFC 267 at the Hilton Hotel, Yas Island.

Lightweight Magomed Mustafaev weighs in before UFC 267.

Middleweight Roman Kopylov weighs in before UFC 267.

Welterweight Benoit Saint Denis weighs in before UFC 267.

Welterweight Benoit Saint Denis weighs in before UFC 267.

Featherweight Mawkwan Amirkhani weighs in before UFC 267.

Featherweight Ricardo Ramos weighs in before UFC 267.

Flyweight Tagir Ulanbekov weighs in before UFC 267.

Light heavyweight Volkan Oezdemir weighs in before UFC 267.

Lightweight Damir Ismagulov weighs in before UFC 267.

Flyweight Allan Nascimento weighs in before UFC 267.

Middleweight Andre Petroski weighs in before UFC 267.

Heavyweight Alexander Volkov weighs in before UFC 267.

Welterweight Li Jingliang weighs in before UFC 267.

Strawweight Virna Jandiroba weighs in before UFC 267.

Featherweight Lerone Murphy weighs in before UFC 267.

Strawweight Amanda Ribas weighs in before UFC 267.

Lightweight Islam Makhachev weighs in before UFC 267.

Welterweight Khamzat Chimaev weighs in before UFC 267.

Welterweight Khamzat Chimaev weighs in before UFC 267.

Both title bouts at Saturday’s UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi are now official, after all four combatants made weight on Friday morning – although Khamzat Chimaev struggled ahead of his much-awaited return to competition.

Light-heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz, who defends the belt he captured in the capital last year, was one of the first men to hit the scales at the Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island, coming in on the money at 205lbs. Blachowicz’s rival, Glover Teixeira, took a little more time to appear, but came to the stage at the same weight.

Setting up the night’s other championship clash - the interim bantamweight title encounter - both Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen were right on point. Sandhagen, the No 3-ranked challenger who accepted the fight on short notice, was among the first out and weighed in at 135lbs. Yan, the former champion initially scheduled for an immediate rematch with belt-holder Aljamain Sterling, was on stage soon after, weighing 135lbs also.

Meanwhile, the hugely anticipated lightweight match-up between Islam Makhachev and Dan Hooker is teed up nicely, with the former clocking 155.5lbs on the scales and the latter a half pound heavier.

The morning's drama was saved for the welterweight clash that whets the appetite. No 11-ranked contender Li Jingliang came in at 171lbs, with Chimaev then having everyone waiting. Making his comeback 13 months after blitzing to a 3-0 record in the UFC, the returning star was last to take to the scales, initially weighing 171.5lbs - a half pound over the limit.

Chimaev has not competed since September last year after a protracted battle with Covid-19. On Friday, the Chechen-born Swede was given an extra hour beyond the two-hour allocated time to weigh in.

Eventually, he arrived back to the ballroom 45 minutes later, but a problem with the scales meant another delay. Erroneously reading 166lbs upon Chimaev's second attempt, he was finally declared at 171lbs.