Tattered UFC Vegas 72 fight card takes further abuse following pair of botched weigh ins

I think it’s fair to assume that anyone involved with putting together the UFC Vegas 72 lineup will be relieved to have this ESPN+ fight card, which at this point is being held together with Popsicle sticks and masking tape, in the rearview mirror on Sunday morning after what can only be described as an ongoing sh*t show from start to finish.

Main event injuries, unexplained pullouts, and now a couple of botched weigh ins.

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HIGH STAKES FLYWEIGHT MATCHUP! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns home to UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sat., June 3, 2023, with No. 3-seeded contender, Kai Kara-France, face rising No. 7-ranked Amir Albazi. In UFC Vegas 74’s ESPN+-streamed co-main event, an exciting Featherweight bout sees No. 15-ranked contender, Alex Caceres, lock horns with all-action Daniel Pineda.

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UFC bantamweight Hailey Cowan took the stage less than five minutes after the early (and official) weigh ins got started this morning in “Sin City” (get full results and video here), tipping the scale at 137.5 for her Jamey-Lyn Horth fight on the ESPN+ “Prelims” card. Horth made her mark without incident, weighing in at 135.5 pounds.

Call it the Cowan curse.

Not long after that drama unfolded, former Bellator bruiser Irina Alekseeva crushed the scale at 140 pounds, a whopping five pounds more than opponent Stephanie Egger, who made 135 on the nose with little effort. Both fights are expected to continue but Cowan and Alekseeva will be forced to surrender a portion of their fight purse.

Payable to their respective opponents.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 72 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN+ preliminary card bouts at 4:30 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN+ main card start time at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 72 news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive here. For the updated and finalized “Song vs. Simon” fight card and ESPN+ line up click here.