Report: Mark Hunt Currently 19 Pounds Over Heavyweight Limit

Less than 12 hours before stepping onto the scale for his pivotal UFC Fight Night 52 headliner against Roy Nelson, No. 6-ranked UFC heavyweight Mark Hunt is living up to his “heavyweight” billing.

According to Yahoo Sports, “The Super Samoan” apparently weighs in at 284 pounds, which is 19 over the heavyweight limit of 265 pounds. If he can’t make 265 at the weigh-ins, which start at 4 p.m. Friday (Sept., 19, 2014) for the Tokyo, Japan, based event, “Big Country” could potentially decline the bout.

But that’s a very unlikely outcome, as the fight will most likely be contested at a catchweight with Nelson earning 20 percent of Hunt’s purse.

Hunt’s issues with making weight reportedly surround him starting his training camp for “Big Country” at around 340 pounds. He’s been out of the cage since early December 2013, when he fought Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva to a rousing draw in the main event of UFC Fight Night 33 from Brisbane, Australia.

Hunt is looking to inch closer to a title shot in the contender-starved UFC heavyweight arena by defeating the No. 8-ranked Nelson, who was last seen demolishing Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC Fight Night 39 in April.

Both Hunt and Nelson are highly regarded for their iron chins and explosive one-punch knockout power. Their bout promises to be one of the most exciting of 2014 on paper, so there’s simply no reason for Hunt’s weight to prevent it from happening, especially at heavyweight.

However, it’s clear that the “Super Samoan” had a lot of catching up to do going into this weekend’s main event, which will be contested at the Saitama Super Arena, a venue where Hunt gained legions during his time in Pride FC.

Will his inability to make weight translate into him gassing against Nelson? With two knockout sluggers like these, the fight may not last long enough to find out.

Photo: Bruce Fedyck for USA TODAY Sports