If you’re gonna try and pull off “The ‘DC’ Towel Trick” you better have a light touch … or they’re going to catch you.
That’s the lesson Road To UFC finalist, Aaron Tau, learned this morning in Sydney, Australia, during UFC 325’s weigh-ins. Tau was supposed to fight Namsrai Batbayar on the “Prelims” portion of the Paramount+-streamed card, which also served as the tournament finals for Road To UFC, an Asia-focused series.
But, after some serious tomfoolery, which saw Tau rest his arms on the “modesty box” to cheat the scale, it resulted in the fight being canceled.
Video of the incident shows Tau — covered by a fabric box used when fighters shed their shorts — weighing in at 122.5 pounds, 3.5 lighter than the Flyweight limit. The box is then taken away and Tau steps on the scale again … this time at 129 pounds, 3 pounds more than the limit.
Closer watching of the initial weigh-in with the box catches Tau putting his elbows on the box, which is a similar trick to what former Light Heavyweight champion, Daniel Cormier, did at UFC 210 when he weighed in for a title fight against Anthony “Rumble” Johnson (see that again here). He shed his shorts and placed his hands on top of a towel being held in front of his privates, shedding an extra pound in the process.
Now, Tau faces an uncertain future. His fight against Batbayar has been canceled, messing up the finals of Road to UFC. Will he face further sanctions from the Australian commission? Will the UFC keep him around? It’s unclear. Don’t cheat like this, kids!
