Aspen Ladd has responded to Miesha Tate, after the former UFC women’s bantamweight champion accused her of cheating during her weigh-in for UFC Vegas 38.
On Friday, Ladd missed weight for her UFC Vegas 38 fight against Macy Chiasson by one pound, leading to the 135-pound bout’s cancelation.
Ladd (4-1) issued an apology on social media, admitting “it’s all my fault” the fight was canceled — and explained she had started her period, which “made this cut absolutely miserable.”
Ladd claimed “the fight wasn’t pulled, my opponent then decided she would rather not go through with it, as is her right. I’m going to get slammed regardless, so let it begin,” she said.
Tate was happy to oblige.
“It’s one thing to miss weight, it’s another thing to try and cheat the scale and use every excuse in the book to not weigh in properly,” Tate wrote on Twitter, including Ladd’s apology in her post. “Everyone saw you cheat and still came in a lb over. I bet you were every bit of 139.”
Ladd responded to Tate, who she called a champ” and a “pioneer” in the MMA world.
“I have a great deal of respect for u. Bottom line is I didn’t make it. There is documented history struggles. 1lb or 10lb the bottom line is I didn’t get it done. Taking control to rectify the situation,” she wrote, adding, “I will not engage w/ neg this has brought.”
Aspen Ladd’s failed weigh-in drew Miesha Tate’s attention. Zuffa LLC (2)When a fan asked how Ladd could have cheated, Tate replied, “Guaranteed she didn’t want put both hands up because she wanted to grab the curtain structure placed around her. Nice try.”
In response to another Twitter user who asked why Ladd skipped the digital scale for the weigh-in, Tate wrote, “Because she wanted to cheat the real scale and she knew if she checked before hand that she couldn’t explain why the lbs suddenly disappeared when she got behind a curtain she could grab onto.”
During the weigh-in, Ladd was weighed with her clothes, and then without her clothes to get a proper read. Officials brought out a curtain to shield her the second time around.
Ladd raised eyebrows after footage from the weigh-in showed her appearing shaky and having trouble raising her arms above her head. The 26-year-old seemed to struggle to stand straight up during the weigh-in, which delayed the process.
Ladd has missed weight once before, and struggled to make weight on other occasions.
In July 2019, Ladd was shaky on the scale before a bout with Germaine de Randamie, but she still made weight. She was knocked out in 16 seconds by de Randamie.
After the card, the California State Athletic Commission suspended Ladd’s license for bantamweight in the state, pending further review.
UFC Vegas 38 would’ve marked Ladd’s first fight since December 2019, after recovering from surgery to repair a torn ACL and MCL.
