[alnorth]

A lot of stupid shit has happened since the weigh-in, and we're not going to get a final answer for another 30 minutes or so. The short answer is that we do not yet know what is going on with the main event, even though weigh ins closed nearly 3 hours ago. This is probably obvious, but if the LW title fight falls out and Khabib is not on the card, then that would be a catastrophic hit to the PPV, so bad that the UFC should seriously consider cancelling the event or making it free. It would be a contender for worst PPV of the year at that point.

Here is what we do know.

1) The UFC wanted Pettis to cut to 155 and step in to save the card. We know he weighed in at 155.2 and was given 2 more hours. Apparently after that Pettis looked around, realized he probably had little chance against Khabib, and decided that if he was going to take a potentially life-altering beating to help out the UFC, then maybe he should get paid a lot of money. He asked for a bump in pay for the fight, well into 7 figures. The UFC said no, and began to explore other options. Somewhere in this drama, the NYAC reportedly butted their heads in to say that they didn't think Pettis should go 5 rounds for some reason, so he's not eligible for a title fight anyway.

2) The UFC then went to Paul Felder because he actually made championship weight at 155. They were getting ready to announce Khabib vs Felder for the LW championship when the NYAC stepped in again and said that they would not allow Felder to fight Khabib. Why? Khabib is 25-0 and #2, but Felder is unranked. Felder is 15-3 scheduled against a dangerous opponent, so he's not some tomato can. So for the first time in the history of the UFC we found someone who takes their rankings seriously, and it came at the worst time possible. If the UFC knew that New York was going to pay attention to rankings, maybe they would have updated it last weekend just in case.

3) Al Iaquinta is an option, but there's a problem. About 6 or 7 hours ago Al looked down at his bathroom scale, saw 155.2, and thought "eh, good enough". If he would have turned around and went back into the tub for a few more minutes, then we'd probably have Khabib vs Al for the title, which actually would have been a pretty cool fight. Unfortunately, he's not eligible for the title, and Khabib only wants to fight for the belt.

4) The UFC is currently talking options with fighters and the NYAC. Maybe they could schedule a 5-round one-sided title bout where Khabib is eligible but his opponent is not. In my mind, the best option (or least-bad option) would be if they could work out a one-sided title fight against Al Iaquinta. Even though he wouldn't get the belt, Al would have a strong claim at a title shot if he somehow beat Khabib.