‘The Crank’ learns lesson in second UFC fight
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Frank “The Crank” Camacho signs posters of Ultimate Fighting Championship 121: Werdum VS Tybura in a pre-fight event in Sydney, Australia last month. He fought Australian Damien “Beatdown” Brown and won by split decision. (Contributed Photo)
Frank “The Crank” Camacho signs posters of Ultimate Fighting Championship 121: Werdum VS Tybura in a pre-fight event in Sydney, Australia last month. He fought Australian Damien “Beatdown” Brown and won by split decision. (Contributed Photo)
Frank “The Crank” Camacho is still learning despite being a professional mixed martial arts fighter for more than 10 years. His last fight against Australian Damien “Beatdown” Brown was no exception.
The 28-year-old Marianas bet still missed weight in his lightweight (155 lbs) bout by a mere 4 lbs even though Ultimate Fighting Championship organizers gave a 1-pound allowance to all fighters. Camacho weighed in at 160 lbs, making him ineligible for the $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus when he defeated Brown via split decision in UFC 121: Werdrum VS Tybura more than a week ago at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.
“There’s a clause in the contract that if you missed the weight, you are not eligible for the bonus. It is what it is and it is a price that I have to pay. It is a huge lesson that I learned. I wasn’t really accounting for it, but $50,000 would have been a big help for me and my family. That could have helped us big time,” said Camacho.
“What happened was I cut water too early. Then the day before the weigh-in, I was trying to sweat to lose the 4 lbs, but the problem is I wasn’t sweating anymore. I was working my butt off for almost two hours,” said Camacho.
His situation was a cause of concern for members of Team “Crank” led by Cuki Alvarez, Steve Roberto, and Melchor Manibusan.
“They were concerned. I was in a really bad shape during the weigh-in that I was so close of not being able to fight,” Camacho said. “I was wearing the sauna suit, running outside, and doing everything but not even a single sweat. Like I was so drained and so sucked out that they thought I was already done for. It was bad on my part because I cut water too early so I don’t have any more water to lose.”
Lesson learned, Camacho said he plans to stay between 170 and 175 lbs when he is not fighting. The 170- to 175-lb target would make it easier for him to shed the extra pounds before he again climbs the octagon.
“I’m more comfortable fighting at 155. I got to eat what I want, but I need to eat healthy. I need to maintain 170 to 175 lbs. The experience in this fight [against Brown] is what I needed for the future of my [MMA] career.”
Camacho said his weight problems could be tied with the idyllic island lifestyle. “I’m just a big boy, a local boy. The food here is always good and I just need to be disciplined in what I eat. It sucks that it is only now that I’m just trying to realize this.”
“Now, I need to eat like an athlete. This is now my career, my job. I just need to eat like a pro. I didn’t eat properly the whole week before the fight. I was just eating nuts, almonds, and that’s it. Sometimes a little bit of chicken or fish. Imagine if I eat better and if I eat good. I would always be ready and in fighting weight before I fight,” he added.
