Roy Nelson: Too Fat For The UFC
When Zuffa decided not to pick up former IFL heavyweight champion Roy Nelson, most of us thought it was simply due to Nelson not being a terribly attractive asset…from a business perspective that is, not literally. Now, however, word is emerging that Nelson’s portly physique is in fact what steered him away from the Octagon, and toward the oversized ring of Affliction.
“Joe Silva was telling me to lose some weight and gain some muscle. He said I need the UFC look,” Nelson recently told TAGG Radio. “Nelson went on to say it was the Barnett type treatment and that he didnt want to do steroids or anything stupid [and] said thats just his genetics.”
While the UFC may be acting a bit harsh by utilizing the “No Fatties” policy, I find it difficult to argue with the notion that “Big Country” couldn’t shed a few dozen pounds fairly easily if he had such a desire. I mean, have you looked at the picture? On the other hand, Roy Nelson remains a heavyweight in a world where competitors in such a weight class are scarce to say the least. Should the UFC really be so picky when it comes to beer bellies even if the talent is there? That’s a tough call. Indeed, the business of MMA is about obtaining and building a solid talent roster, but the business of the UFC is very much about marketability, and I guess the powers that be just don’t see Nelson being a very strong draw with his whole third trimester look.
Nelson is slated to face off against UFC veteran Paul Buentello at Affliction “Day Of Reckoning” on October 11th.
Tags: Roy Nelson
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Ridiculous. No doubt the guy could stand to skip a meal now and then but it’s about the fights not the scales right? Tank Abbott is one of my favorite fighters and the guy did damn decent in the UFC back in the day. Some guys got a six pack some guys got a keg.
Hmm, I can see the UFC’s point of view though. When you work hard and spend a lot of money to legitimise and portray MMA as a ‘genuine’ sport, one of those selling points is that the fighters are genuine (physically fit) athletes, preaching all that and then letting the hippo look (I mean seriously, just look at that picture!) into a cage doesnt send the best message across.
Fair point on Tank, but im of the opinion Tank ‘ISNT’ an athlete, hes a rock solid brawler (who did well back in the day simply because the fighters weren’t well rounded). His record the past several years has proved that. I think the UFC of 2008 want to avoid any association with that image (and quite rightly so in my opinion). Although I dont want to comment specifically on Roy Nelson as ive never seen him fight and im sure he IS very good, the bottom line is if you want to fight the best competition, you gotta keep trim.
Football is a legitimate sport and you see fatties on the line every game! If the guy’s got talent then he’s got talent. Period. As long as he kicks the crap out of people I’ll watch. Why does anyone care what he looks like?
Tank is just getting old. He is a brawler but that’s a good thing as far as I’m concerned. His fights were always exciting, win or lose.
Yes thats true, I completely agree. But you need to be objective. We are already fans, so our appeal is far greater.
If the sport is to become bigger, then UFC/Affliction/Pro Elite etc need to attract the passive fans and those who maybe havent experianced MMA at all. And on the whole, most of the people out there dont want to see two fat guys slugging it out in a brawl. Otherwise the UFC would have been huge in 1995.
They shouldn’t be so pickey. The talent at HVWT is so thin they have a guy with just 3 bouts ranked.
Soemone has the same name as me.
Perhaps someone who has seen him fight can answer this for me…
Where did he weigh in for fights? There could be a legitimate concern with how much weight he needs to cut to get to 265.
Interesting.
But i have to agree with Silva.
That ain’t genetics he is a fatty !
This is exactly another example of what is wrong with the UFC. They FORGET that most of the FANS are beer drinking gut bunnies!! (I’m one of them)
I am glad he mentioned the ‘Barnett treatment’ because I’ve seen many of you on here question Barnett’s ability in the ring even though HE left the UFC because of how Dana & Company treated him NOT because he lost. He beat Randy Couture for the title and then left due to poor treatment about his physique, which is a tad portly.
Roy “Big Country” Nelson happens to be one of my favorite fighters BECAUSE OF HIS BEER GUT. Not only can the guy bang…but his stamina IS THERE. He’s been 3 rounds easily and I’m willing to bet he can go 5 and still have some KO power. Those of you who have seen him fight should agree with me on this.
Those of you who have not seen him fight…don’t bother commenting until you do.
Kick some a$$ Nelson! !#$% the UFC!
Sincerely,
Your Resident Anti-UFC, beer drinking, terrorist, hippie, Nazi fool with a gut the size of Nelsons.
I haven’t heard any reports from the UFC that they said he was too fat. I’m not saying they did or didn’t say it, but it isn’t official when a fighter says that an opposing organization made a rude comment to me.
As for Nelson, the worst possible scenario came at the first Affliction event. Ben Rothwell, the IFL heavyweight golden boy before Nelson was thoroughly demolished by Andre Arlovski. Even though Nelson isn’t Rothwell, and vice-versa, it is easy to make a comparison since they both had similar runs in the IFL, and both competed against each other in a very close match. I think the day Rothwell went down, Nelson’s stock went down too…whether that’s fair or not, who knows. But the only measuring stick they have for Nelson is the IFL and Ben Rothwell, and that stick seems to be getting shorter.
Tank was a fatty in the UFC – before it was under current management..
I’m glad they didnt sign him – I dont care what reason was actually given – he wouldnt make it in the UFC…Brock would kill him, Nog would destroy him, Kongo…Hearring….yea…Roy Nelson should go to Elite and fight Kimbo or something…
Tmoney,
You are right on point. Football is full of fatties. And a lot of players baloon up a year after they retire too.
I want to see the best fighters, not the best looking. Remember Riddick Bowe? He was fat and he beat the better shaped champ Evander Holyfield, 2 out of 3 times. And Bowe was fatter each fight.
Tim Silvia never looked like he was fit either. But he was big and strong. He is really unattractive.
Nelson should fight as the “common man,” like Dusty Rhodes.
Jason N.,
I’d love to see Nelson fight Kimbo. But I like Kimbo and he’s no way ready for a champ. I want Kimbo to get to 7 and 0, before he steps it up.
True not everyone has the genetics to have a six pack but a gut that large is just gross. Sorry but seeing 2 fat slobs “bang it out” is much less appealing.
I saw that fight on FSN. He blew it out to make a point.He also did a jumping kick that rivaled Van Damme(neither remark is a joke)
Big Country could slim down a bit lets be honest, but if he doesnt want to thats his choice, aslong as he can make 265 what would it matter really? once he gasses and gets ko’d he would then realize that his cardio perhaps might need some work, really IFL was fun to watch sometimes but the other HW’s in the world are going to pick apart Rothwell and Big Country imo, and Barnett may be oddly shaped but he is a top eschalon HW, Nelson shouldnt compare himself to Barnett
FR702, Nelson did not compare himself to Barnett. He compared his ’situation’ to Barnett’s. Being treated poorly by the UFC was the common theme between them. I don’t believe he ever stated his skills were in comparison to Barnett’s.
Dannyboy, very true i guess i should clearify,that i meant to write that Barnett’s situation with the UFC is slightly different he was the Champ and wanted some respect he had worked for the UFC fought for them made money for them, and the UFC f’d Barnett
Big Country hasnt done a thing for the UFC, and it may have been a dik move for Silva to allegedly ask Nelson to do this but i believe that his situation is different than Barnett’s because Barnett was already working for them….
now i wasnt able to write that all down earlier my client showed up early and i was on this site via my phone so i just pushed submit…. cheers and such
Babe Ruth was fat as hell and he’s one of the greatest athletes of all time!!! It looks like Nelson is taking the same performance enhancers as the babe too, HOT DOGS AND BEER!!! If the big boy can bang, let him bang it out with some rookie and if he gets knocked out, well **** it would be pretty funny at least, but i could see him as a fan favorite anywhere.
Does anyone know his walking around weight? I wouldn’t be surprised if eventually they institute some kind of rule about how much weight you can cut in a limited time because it really is very unhealthy to do that repeatedly.
Like Karen Carpenter’s magic exploding heart unhealthy.
I’m sorry but Football players are not fat. I mean they are big but some of those “fat guys” as some of you call them, run faster, lift more weight and can play football pretty damn good. Another thing, This is a sport and I want to watch the best trained and most dedicated athletes. The only thing this guy is dedicated to is the Buffet line of the closet Resturant. I think he should lose a couple of pounds (like 20-30) then see how he looks. He would get destroyed in the UFC, look at Rothwell and he was in better shape and still got his a$$ whooped by the Pit Bull!
Sherdog lists Nelson at 249lbs, yet his last weigh in tipped at 264.2. As for his general walking weight-god only knows. But either way the guy could definitely make the 265lb HW limit, though I guess it doesn’t really matter now.
Unless he’s 5′6, that picture isn’t anywhere near 265…
I don’t think the beer gut or his fighting style is the problem – it’s his tits.
Paul B. vs. Roy Nelson is like the battle of the flabby HW’s. But seriosly, Roy is disgusting. That is a complete lack of trying to get into any kind of physical shape. I mean he does gass out rather early on, he can sometimes go the rounds but past the level of the IFL and you can’t afford to give your opponent any edge. And being a fat slob is deffinetly not an advantage.
look at chuck tell me chuck doesnt have a beer gut if chuck is allowed to fight in the ufc then roy should be…just because your fat doesnt mean your not atrhletic…look at mark hunt,mighty mo,william perry,butter bean,warren sapp,chuck liddell,josh haynes,ben rothwell…and plenty more
Has he ever submitted anyone by smothering? ..
Dude, you can physically see Chuck’s abs on top of his gut.. How can you honestly compare anybody.. ANYBODy in the UFC’s physic vs Roy’s. Look at the picture! and thats honestly his good side. I’ve seen this guy fight. He’s fairly sloppy. Look the IFL had to bring in Brad Imes for their title fight, that is the state of their HW division.
How about a sumo match with Tank Abbott in the cage. First guy to run his opponent through the cage wins.
Gunslinger,
You can’t put chuck and this guy in the same category. Plus Chuck does have abs on top of his gut. This guy is just fat. He is not dedicated to being an athlete. Tell you the truth I have seen amateur fighters that are in better shape than this guy and they make hell of a lot less money thin the dough boy in the photo. Probably work 2 jobs while they are at it.
KOuch, that is very funny!!!
didnt Dana White once say something to the effect of the reason why Mark Hunt wasnt sought after by the UFC was because Hunt refused to cut down to 265? i could be totally off base here but i thought i read that somewhere…?
Plus there is a HUGE different for the reasons. Roy Nelson cuts to make the 265lb weight limit. So does Brock Lesnar and Tim Sylvia. Brock is 6′3 and Tim is 6′8, Roy Nelson is 6′0…
Picture Brock Lesnar standing next to Roy nelson now realize that after the weight in they both walk around at 280lb
Liddell was a fatso with a beerbelly hanging out but he fights in the ufc………..why is that? Roy should be given a contract………….this is discrimination at its worst. What if there was no bald people allowed in the ufc? Where would u go then Uncle fester? (Dana)
Jerry,
Dana is the law….he goes any place he wants.
Chuck as everyone else earlier has stated, actually has ab muscles, that actually is how he is built, Big Country has worked hard to get that tummy and hopefully his workout consisted of plenty of high life or pabst blue ribbon and slabs of ribs, jk, but if u ever have seen Chuck in person he is anything but fat, GSP “cut” he is not chuck also isnt 27 yrs old…. so imo opionion making that statement doesnt hold water
Dude anybody, ANYBODY that compares Chuck Liddel to Roy Nelson has never even see na picture of either Chuck or Roy. Thats like saying Jeff Monson and Tim Sylvia are both HW’s so they had to have been the same heigth. Roy Nelson is fat. Plain and simple. Yes the man has gone the distance against some completely low talented fighters (including Ben Rothwell IMO) but the man is 6′0 cutting weightfor 265 with not a single signal of muscle even brewing. Chuck is actually fairly lean except some love handles. He has shredded shoulders and back muscles. He’s not bad really. Chuck is more genetics than anything. Roy is fat.
chuck cannot even be bloody compared to on this case, I mean, who dares walk up to chuck and say ” you got a fat ass beer belly pal ” cos I damn well would not. He is well trim, and yes, like lots of people on here already have stated, he has abs up there, so take a closer look before you comment , Roy Nelson is alot heavier, and yeah, could trim up. To say he is TOO FAT for the ufc, is probably a bt harsh. BUt he could trim up if he wanted to enter the ufc, and people would respect him for that.
I think Lesnar will be champ soon tho, and stay there for a while. He just should have bloody choked Heath as he had lots of chances to do so. Nice first punch tho !
lesnar vs nelson, I think Lesnar. He is too quick and powerful to overcome.
hey, just seen some youtube footage of him on interview about the Brad Imes fight, he kind looks like Randy, from My Name Is Earl !!
ha ha
wow! faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttttttyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!
Looking at Roy, he looks like he spends more time at McDonalds supersizing his meals than he does training lmfao. Barnett and Silvia are a bit on the jiggly side but compared to Roy, they look superlean. I can’t say I blame the ufc management for telling roy to lose the lard, you’re trying to promote world class athletic competition and one of the by products of that is looking like you at least train seriously for it.
If roy is complaining about it being genetic, get some liposuction done and go from there. We recently saw about the 1st pregnant man, in roy’s case you have to wonder when he’s going to go into labor because he looks about 8 or 9 months pregnant. Hell even those fat bastards who compete in the world’s strongest man competitions who often look about 6 months pregnant, look better than him. Change his name from big country roy nelson to country buffet roy nelson because thats where looks that’s where he dedicates his time to.
dude fat he needs to loose some weight to improve him self. Like his speed and stamia and even make people get scared a lil. He beat kimbo slice bu a moon landing on kimbo couldn’t move that’s cuz roy was so fat. He also did weak ass punches he couldn’t handle kimbo when it came to a fist fight