Johny Hendricks wants everyone to know that there was more to his latest weigh-in blunder than poor dieting.
The former UFC welterweight champion came in two pounds over the limit for his middleweight fight with Tim Boetsch this past Sunday, prompting critics to question Hendricks's diet and discipline. It was the fourth time Hendricks failed to beat the scale and the first time since moving up to the 185-lb division.
Hendricks recently told "Submission Radio" that it was an illness during fight week that prevented him from being able to make weight this time around.
"Wednesday, something happened and I started running a fever," Hendricks said, according to Jed Meshew of MMA Fighting. "Thursday, Friday I'm sitting there going, 'Oh my gosh.' It's funny because I love fans but I think that they're the most ill-informed people and the reason that I say that is because if y'all are feeling sick, what do y'all do? If you are sick what do you get to do? You get to take a day off. ...
"It just sucks because 185 is not that hard to make but whenever you're sick, it is. Your body's not gonna give up anything and the next thing you know, you're trying to turn right around in 48 hours and fight for your life."
Hendricks' three previous misses happened at 170 pounds, the weight class that he once ruled over. The 33-year-old fighter also fell ill before a bout with future champion Tyron Woodley at UFC 192. That fight was canceled due to Hendricks experiencing an intestinal blockage and kidney stones.
Nevertheless, "Big Rigg" insists that this latest mishap was just bad luck and his weight won't be an issue in the future.
"One eighty-five is so easy to make," Hendricks said. "Right now if they said, 'You have to fight next week,' I could make it."